Since the beginning of the year, the interest in Russia of foreign brands, especially luxury ones, has noticeably decreased. The number of stores open this year may reach the lowest level in the last five years. According to the consulting company Colliers International Group, only 19 new brands appeared on the market in the first ten months, five more are preparing to open, which is several times less than in the same period last year. In 2017, 55 new foreign brands entered the Russian market.

Similar statistics are provided by the company JLL. According to the calculations of its specialists, since the beginning of the year, 21 international companies have entered the domestic market, whereas last year there were 38 openings.

The downward trend is not a temporary phenomenon, it will continue in the future, says Magomed Akhkuev, senior analyst at the Research Department of Colliers International. According to him, this is due to the problems of the Russian economy, a decrease in consumer demand in general and for fashion products in particular, as well as the process of entering the market itself, which takes about three years.

In addition, the number of vacant sites has decreased both in premium street retail and in shopping centers. About 5% of the retail space is free on the sought-after central shopping streets. Most of the new locations of the opening brands are in shopping malls.

Among the landmark discoveries of 2018, the fashion house Karl Lagerfeld, the American accessories brand Coach, recently opened the first monostore of the famous French chain of beauty stores Sephora, a store of the legendary Swedish brand will appear before the end of the year COS.

Analysts predict that Asian companies may soon replace European companies, provided that they independently enter the Russian market and invest in projects.

Source: "Merchant";

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