Benetton expands to Mexico

Benetton and Sears Mexico have signed an agreement to expand United Colours of Benetton in Mexico.

The Group will significantly extend its presence in Mexico with a total of 250 points of sale in both Sears Mexico department stores and new stores by 2010.

Under the agreement, points of sale offering fashion and accessories of the UCB collections for women, men and children, will open in Sears department stores across Mexico. With the parallel opening of 50 new UCB stores, Benetton Group will reach a total of around 250 retail outlets in just three years, decisively expanding its presence in the country.

“Working in collaboration with such an important partner”, commented Benetton's executive deputy chairman Alessandro Benetton, “will enable us to accelerate United Colors of Benetton's success and development in Mexico. We have established a solid alliance with Sears based not only on our shared objective regarding high quality products, retailing and customer service, but also on the common Latin spirit of our corporate identities and backgrounds. We believe the Mexican market will be a source of great satisfaction to us in upcoming years. This marks another fundamental phase in our programme aimed at firmly boosting our expansion in strong-growth world regions. In addition to Latin America, these include India, China, Turkey, Russia and eastern Europe – where we operate alone or in partnership with leading international groups.”

Benetton's American expansion programme begins today from Mexico and will go on, subsequently, to identity other South American countries in which to increase its presence. Furthermore, new Benetton offices will open in Miami, USA. The new headquarters will monitor the market and identify business opportunities in the Americas. The Miami branch will also establish a sourcing hub to serve the whole area, distributing, amongst others, collections designed specifically for the region.