Cortefiel expands in the US

Spain’s second largest apparel retailer Grupo Cortefiel is heading to the US. The namesake brand Cortefiel will debut with the first store, followed by stores of the group’s other brands Springfield, Women’s Secret and Pedro del Hierro during 2014-2015.

To drive its expansion in the US, Grupo Cortefiel signed an agreement with Alhokair Fashion Retail, a leading Saudi Arabian company that specializes in the retail business and currently has partnerships with other international brands like Gap, Banana Republic, Topshop and Marks & Spencer.

Cortefiel makes US debut

Cortefiel is planning to open stand-alone stores in shopping malls across the US plant; the opening of the first Cortefiel store will coincide with the presentation of the Spring/Summer 2014 collection of the company’s upscale brand Pedro del Hierro Madrid at the New York Fashion Week in September. All in all, more than 80 new stores are planned in the next five years, starting at the East Coast.

Grupo Cortefiel has been working together with Alhokair since 2009 when the Spanish company tried to introduce its brands Cortefiel and Pedro del Hierro in the United Arab Emirates. The new agreement will help Grupo Cortefiel speed up its internationalization through an expansion into the North American market.

Already in the ‘60s and ‘70s, the brand Cortefiel was available in the US but not through stand-alone stores but popular department stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale's and Macy's. Currently, Grupo Cortefiel operates approximately 1,100 stores mainly in Europe (Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Austria) but generates 85 percent of its revenues in Spain.

Alhokair Fashion Retail operates more than 1,400 stores in nine countries in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, the Caucasus regions and the US and represents more than 75 international retail brands.

Image: Cortefiel