Jitrois eyes global expansion to reach 15 stores by 2014

By

Anaïs Lerévérend

Published
Apr 25, 2013

As the fashion house celebrates thirty years of existence, Jean-Claude Jitrois is seeking global expansion. After getting a foot in the door at Paris Fashion Week in March, the French leather specialist is on the pursuit of international store openings in 2013. With the new stores, the brand will be looking at reaching a total of 15 stores across three continents in the next year and a bit, following an increased importance of exports at the brand.

The first of these openings is scheduled for Berlin in September. The directly-operated store is a step further into one of its most important markets in terms of wholesale.

A few weeks later and change of continent, the first Hong-Kong store is due to open. The brand inaugurated its first Asian store at the end of 2012 with a boutique in Beijing, opened in partnership with a local player. A second Beijing location is reportedly on the cards for early 2014.

As for the rest of the deployment, the United States is the main target. In March, the company created its U.S. subsidiary to head up distribution and communication in North America. Three new openings are in the pipelines, the first being scheduled to open in November in popular Colorado ski resort Aspen. Following that, a second store will open in Vail on a seasonal basis. Finally, a third store is in the process of being finalized for New York’s Madison Avenue.

Exports represented just over half of 2012 revenue at Jitrois, which was at 9.8 million euros, up slightly from 2011.

Jean-Claude Jitrois and Gilbert Maria, the brand’s founders, are still at the head of the company thirty years on.