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GAP Eyeing Chinese Markets For International Growth

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GAPThe Global specialty retailer of apparel and accessories, The Gap Inc. (NYSE:GPS) said in a statement earlier today that the company is aiming for a threefold increase in the number of stores in china in the coming 2012.

Gap Inc. is a recent addition to the growing number of foreign brands setting up shop Asian markets to tap the fast growing consumer spending growth.  The competition between the foreign brands in Chinese market is growing day by day and Gap Inc. is currently competing with brands like Fast retailing Company Limited, the parent company of Uniqlo and Esprit Holding Ltd. (PINK:ESHDF).

The president of Gap Inc. in China, Redmond Yeung said that the company is expected to be operating about 15 stores by the end of this year and according to the current plans Gap Inc. will be able to operate about 45 stores by the end of the fiscal year 2012.


Currently Gap owns eight stores in Beijing and Shanghai and has plans to open new stores in Tianjin and Hangzhou by the end of this year.  The expansion plan comes as a huge investment to the company but it is a good choice as the company seems to be in control of everything. In addition to it, the 12th five year plan of China focuses clearly on retail business in the country which is set to double within next five years. By increasing its presence in the country, Gap Inc. wants to make sure that it is a part of the growth.

Gap Inc. based in San Francisco, California also operates Banana Republic and Old Navy brands targeting the growing middle class in China. The Chinese fashion market is experiencing a huge growth and at this pace it is expected to reach about 1.3 trillion Yuan or $201.3 billion in the next 10 years. Many companies which entered into the Chinese market were forced to pull out due to their fragmented distribution networks and failure to localize to localize the products.

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edliston
Post Written By: Ed Liston

Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing in his yacht.


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Ed Liston

Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing.

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