_Low-cost fashion, also a winning formula in Spain

With more than 20 years of experience in the retail world, for the past 10, César de Vicente has been Kiabi's CEO in Spain. A project which is currently riding high; in the midst of an expansion phase and boasting a very clear-cut business strategy for the coming years.

febrero 13, 2017

You recently opened offices in Madrid in the Isla Azul shopping centre. What prompted that move?

One of our strategic objectives is to locate ourselves close to customers looking for fashion and what better way to do that than by moving our Support Services to one of the country's leading and cutting-edge shopping centres.

Kiabi is expanding in Spain. What kind of turnover are you currently achieving and what is your growth forecast?

This year we will exceed €200 million and our goal is to break the €500 million mark in five years’ time.

Part of this new phase involves changing the image of your stores, entering shopping centres and starting to connect with a younger audience via social media. How are the Spanish welcoming this new strategy?

Our change of image involves turning ourselves from a clothes retailer into a fashion brand that appeals to all households. We are increasingly focusing on fashion thanks to: our store locations, the collections, the customer experience that has been enhanced with the launch of an innovative and distinctive store concept, our communication channels - much more up-to-date and digitalised; but above all thanks to our teams.

What makes us unique is our culture, one we refer to as the culture of happiness; if our teams are happy, our customers will also be happy. Our customers pass this happiness on to us and inspire us to continue setting the Kiabi brand apart from the rest.

What are the main differences between the French and Spanish markets?

In France, we have a much bigger market share in retail parks, whereas in Spain our stores work much better in city centre shopping centres and high streets.

How is Kiabi adopting new technologies and e-commerce to drive its business strategy?

For us, the customer is who we focus on and its them that decides how to buy, try and pay... There are no longer any barriers separating sales channels and that’s why we have completely overhauled our culture and how we organise our business, allowing us to be more flexible and able to provide customers with an immediate response.

The store is another stage of the customer journey, and we know that stores and businesses of the future are going to undergo a complete transformation. For this reason, we are digitalising the points of sale and everything relating to big data to understand exactly what our clients want in order to offer them a unique and exciting experience.

Kiabi, which is owned by the Mulliez group that manages other retailers such as Alcampo, Decathlon and Leroy Merlin, is the leading French textile company. It has 55 stores in Spain and since 2014 its business strategy has focused on bringing the brand closer to customers, opening stores in city centres and the main shopping centres.

Kiabi CEO's more personal side:

Married and father to three girls
President of the Directors Club of the Asociation por le Progress du Management APM in Madrid
Lecturer at IE Business School
Member of the Retail Forum Madrid Advisory Board
Passionate about running, with various marathons under his belt
Fan of reading, cinema, as well as an enthusiast for everything that involves gastronomy and travelling
His favourite cities? New York and... Burgos