More than a decade since the brand’s inception, Zara-owner Inditex has finally decided to grace the UK with a physical Oysho store, but why now?

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Oysho’s UK debut came in the form of a 3,552 sq ft store in Westfield White City

The UK has been home to global fashion behemoth Inditex’s stable of brands for decades. Since the first British Zara opened on Regent Street in 1998, the Spanish conglomerate has executed a pacey expansion across the UK.

Now with the likes of Pull & Bear, Bershka, Massimo Dutti, Zara Home and more added to its catalogue, if you throw a stone in a UK town centre you’re in with a strong chance of hitting an Inditex store. 

Oysho has been part of the group’s offer since the early noughties but the group has been relatively shy about its presence here – selling only online and through third-party marketplaces – until now. 

At the start of March, Oysho’s UK debut came in the form of a 3,552 sq ft store in Westfield White City. The minimalistic, white store design is split across two floors and provides customers with a click-and-collect service available within an hour of ordering products via the Oysho app, as well as in-store delivery, free Wi-Fi and three self-checkouts.

But why has it waited this long? What does it bring to the party? And will it be enough to quicken the pulse of the UK’s fiercely competitive sportswear market?

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  • Owner: Inditex
  • Founded: 2001
  • Stores: 457
  • Global markets: 56
  • Range: Womenswear, lingerie and sportswear

 

Sportswear speciality

To understand why Inditex has made this call, we need to understand how its strategy has changed. 

When Oysho began trading in the early 2000s, lingerie and nightwear were the primary focus. It picked up the pace with its sportswear offer around 2011 and it made it a hero range in 2019 – just in time for an explosion in the category during the pandemic. 

The brand now says the world of sport is “part of its lifestyle” and last year it launched a workout app filled with free content to engage with fitness-conscious shoppers.

 

Its Oysho Sport range is trend-led and renews frequently, heavily influenced by the colours and styles that are popular in womenswear. According to Retail Week senior analyst Beth Bloomfield, it is its sports focus that sets it apart from other brands in the Inditex family.

“The smallest of all the Inditex brands, Oysho is arguably the most niche, specialising in activewear,” she says.

“As such, its sports arm is not heavily replicated among the other Inditex brands and offers customers a different proposition.”

But it is far from the only fashion-led sportswear brand in the UK. Playing in the UK means it faced fierce competition from the likes of Lululemon and Sweaty Betty. Its advantage is its price point, with leggings starting at £25.99, compared to Lululemons’ cheapest at £64.

GlobalData apparel analyst Pippa Stephens tells Retail Week that although Oysho does not pose a major threat to any of the market leaders just yet, it could steal spend from other mid-market players that have invested in their sportswear lines, such as Marks & Spencer, which recently expanded its activewear offering through its Sports Edit platform, and H&M, which launched its Move sports brand in August 2022.

Why the UK and why now?

Inditex has remained tight-lipped about its reasons for Oysho’s UK launch but its renewed focus on sportswear tells part of the story. The group said the new store “reinforced its journey towards the world of sport” – a world that is increasingly lucrative in the UK. 

“The UK has one of the largest sportswear markets in Europe,” says Stephens.

“It is continuing to outperform total apparel, and this will have been a significant factor impacting Inditex’s decision”

When considering affordability, the choice of the UK also makes sense. With inflation high and the cost-of-living crisis bearing down on shoppers, Oysho has the potential to catch the eye of those keeping a tight hold on their personal finances. 

“Consumers are prioritising spend on versatile items with good value for money,” says Stephens

“Sportswear and athleisure tick both these boxes since they can be worn both day to day and when doing exercise.”

On top of this, Inditex knows the UK fashion market inside out, having reached sales in the UK of £1.1bn under its various banners in 2021/22. Bloomfield says Inditex is also known for using its stores to demonstrate its brand stories.

She adds: “With female-first retailers such as Lululemon and Sweaty Betty carving out strong UK businesses and a buoyant athleisure market, Inditex will be keen to nurture the Oysho brand as successfully in the UK as it has done with Zara.”

Inditex has chosen not to reveal any further details about its plans for Oysho but it is likely that we are at the beginning of another Inditex brand’s journey to market dominance on UK shores.