India plays key role in growing Mango's global business: Exec

Spanish fashion brand Mango said India is a crucial market for its global growth due to surging demand for women’s western wear, retail infrastructure built over the past decade and online adoption in India.
“India is one of the 10-15 markets that matter the most today in the strategy of Mango for the growth of the company. The country has grown appetite, especially in the women’s wear in the western segment. The country has given itself much better infrastructure, on retail,” Daniel Lopez, chief expansion and franchise officer at Mango, told ET. “India is a very online connected country and this has led the country worldwide in terms of online intelligence.”
Mango has 110 stores in India via its partner Myntra. The apparel brand had first entered the country nearly two decades ago with Major Brands and had later tied up with DLF for its expansion. However, it partnered with Myntra in 2014 for its online platform, which in 2017 was extended for opening physical stores as well. Globally, the retailer plans to open 500 new stores by 2026 in key markets, including the US, the UK and India, as part of a three-year strategic plan. Mango said it will take the store count in India to 120 even as it saw a 50% increase in online demand last calendar year.
“In Spain, with 45 million inhabitants, we have 350 stores and in France, with 70-80 million inhabitants, we have very close to 250. So, I think that the journey has just started in India and the roots are very solid, but we still have a lot to do ahead of us,” added Lopez.

The retailer said it does not want to change its price-tag to mop up higher volumes at the cost of diluting its global positioning of strong focus on quality and in-house design. Despite higher pricing, Myntra, which sells its entire global range in India, said Mango has been its largest selling global brand in women’s western wear for the past two years.

“Mango is one of the preferred brands for the metros and is growing with our non-metro shoppers aspiring to get their hands on the latest in global fashion. The brand drops fresh styles every month and endeavours to ensure latest trends are accessible,” said Sharon Pais, chief business officer, Myntra.