INTRODUCTION

Inditex is the largest and leading fashion brand in the world, with a great global
reputation in the main markets. It owns several fashion brands, including the fast
fashion brand ZARA. Inditex's success is attributed to its integrated business model,
excellent supply chain management and passion for creativity.
Inditex launched a series of brands to cater to the different tastes of different types
of modern customers. This helps the brand to develop its customer base more
quickly. The company never invested much in marketing. It has always relied on
other forms of marketing mainly through the media, websites and retail stores.

STRENGTHS:
Integrated business model:
The integrated business model is one of Inditex's main advantages.
From design to supply, quality control and product manufacturing, logistics and retail
at all stages, the company has achieved a high level of integration, which is why its
efficiency and productivity. Furthermore, without this level of integration, it is
impossible to build such a large, efficient and effective global network.

Large Range of products:

Inditex brings a variety of products to serve different groups of customers, including
men, women and teenagers.
Inditex's first brand was Zara, which after Zara's success brought more brands,
including Pull & Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho, Zara Home and
Uterqüe. Each of these brands is different from the other, based on different themes
and serving different market segments.

Strong supply chain and retail network:

There are currently more than 1,800 suppliers supplying products to Inditex's
factories. Inditex's suppliers have a total of 12 groups, accounting for about 95% of
their total production. They are in Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Turkey, India, Pakistan,
Bangladesh, Vietnam, Cambodia, China, Brazil and Argentina. In 2017, it expanded its
trading platform to major Asian markets, including India, Malaysia, Indonesia,
Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Supply chain and retail chain continues to help the brand expand more rapidly and
increase its customer base and revenue.

Weaknesses:

Low focus on Marketing and promotions:

Despite being a large and successful brand, Inditex has not focused a lot on
marketing and promotions. It has reduced its operational costs by investing less in
marketing.
In future the competitive pressure could increase even further which might force
Inditex to spend on marketing and promotions.

Opportunities: -
Customer experience:
In addition to training its employees in customer service, the brand also invests in
technology to increase the level of service and improve the customer experience.
It is investing in several technologies so that its customers have the best in the store
and in the online shopping experience.

Invest in marketing:
Investing in marketing is a great opportunity that can help Inditex to increase its
customer base, as well as its market share.
This has helped the brand to control costs, but the competitive pressure has
increased and, it may be essential for Inditex to invest in marketing and advertising.

Threats:
Competitive pressures:
Competition in the modulation industry continues to increase, resulting in increased
pressure for Inditex in terms of production efficiency and customer service. In
addition to the affordable brands that compete with Zara, there are also more
complex brands that compete with several of the inditex brands.

Regulatory pressures:
The legal and political regulation of the fashion industry has increased, thereby
creating greater pressure on fashion signs. Inditex has always been a responsible
brand, in relation to customer service or supply chain practices. Adopting a
sustainable business model, but it is trying to expand faster abroad.

Costs of raw materials and labor:

Raw material costs continue to rise. This leads to higher operating costs for INDITEX.
The company obtains only good quality raw material and hires only the best. In the
future, your operating costs may increase due to higher raw materials and labor
costs that would affect your revenues and benefits.

Recommendation:
Investing in marketing can help you grow even faster. Creative marketing can be a
great strength for any brand and inditex must keep in mind the high level of
competition in the fashion world.

Conclusion:
Inditex sailed quickly and successfully against various obstacles that still disrupt other
fashion brands in the industry trying to become leaders.
It managed an excellent supply chain and an important and optimized retail chain
covering around 96 countries.
However, it is also focused on sustainability, which is the key to its popularity and the
reason for the excellent growth it has enjoyed since its foundation.
Inditex is strong in several areas, but there are difficulties to come, in addition to
intense competition. You will have to be ready for all this.

Reference:
Abhijeet Pratap. (2018) Inditex SWOT Analysis. Available at:
https://notesmatic.com/2018/11/inditex-swot-analysis/ (Accessed: 13 April 2021)