H&M opens first store in Serbia, next due to open as early as September 12th

(Photo: Teodora Brnjoš)

The first store was opened Thursday at Belgrade-based Delta City Shopping Center in space covering 2,100 square meters.

People in Serbia have been talking about the arrival of H&M for nearly five years, at least as much as they talked about the arrival of IKEA store chain. H&M Director Karl-Johan Persson has recently said that "H&M did not come to Serbia earlier because they were unable to find an appropriate space," adding that they have serious plans for the Serbian market.

Persson, grandson of the founder of this fashion company, said in an interview with Blic that that company would bring the world`s best fashion concept to Serbia, as well as more money and more paid taxes.

The company has already hired 130 workers and plans to employ much more. H&M came to our country directly and not through franchise partners, which is what multinationals of the kind usually do.

(Photo: Teodora Brnjoš)

Plans

The next H&M store in our country will be opened September 12th in Stadion Shopping Center. As people at that company say, they also consider opening new stores in other cities in Serbia (Novi Sad is frequently mentioned), but not before they see the first results of their operations here.

People at the company announce that they want to be the most competitive in the market the whole year long and not only twice a year.

H&M was established in Sweden in 1947. Today they run about 2,900 stores in 50 markets, including those where they operate through franchises.

In 2012, the company's sales (inclusive of VAT) were at SEK 140,948 million, whereas the number of its employees exceeded 104,000.

Jelena Djelic