Editor’s Note
This article explores the strategic shift in Spain’s multi-brand retail sector, where success now hinges on creating immersive physical experiences that complement online channels. It’s a timely look at how stores are evolving from mere showrooms into dynamic destinations.
Multi-brand stores in Spain are entering a new era. The retail world is undergoing a predicted evolution that goes beyond aesthetic transformations to catch the eye of the new consumer. The change is now a matter of mindset that guarantees business growth, a transformation that definitively bets on the physical channel after finding balance in the online world. Stores are no longer just a showcase; they must be a place to be that hooks and attracts through different factors.
What future, then, awaits the multi-brand store? After the digital and shopping mall boom, multi-brand stores survived. In fact, despite the numerous closures that different sectors have suffered in recent years, these spaces continue to operate. The key, as always, is adapting to the times and changes. The multi-brand stores of the future need a differential commitment to creativity and innovation, as well as the intelligence to understand that sales are in the online channel as much as in the offline one. In turn, the brands of the future are redefining the rules in an oversaturated industry; they go beyond the product, becoming a form of expression, a lifestyle, and a connection with their audience. Of course, these ingredients must be reflected in a showcase or display of a multi-brand store.
In 2023, it was estimated, according to data from the National Statistics Institute (INE), that multi-brand jewelry stores in Spain experienced significant evolution, with the total turnover of the retail jewelry and watch market growing by 7%, reaching 1.6 billion euros, thus consolidating its recovery after the declines suffered during the pandemic. Within this sector, specialized chains achieved greater market concentration, representing 56% of total sales. In 2024, multi-brand jewelry stores continue to be a significant part of the jewelry sector in Spain. In fact, in recent years, both multi-brand stores and own-brand stores have undergone an undeniable transformation, accelerated by the sector’s brands betting on opening physical stores, also demonstrating their growth. We review the latest movements in the jewelry sector at the retail level, both own-brand and multi-brand stores, to understand the market situation and the future.
In 2023, PDPAOLA had eight stores in Spain, including own-brand stores such as the opening of an outlet in La Roca Village, its first establishment of this type. Currently, PDPAOLA has seventeen own-brand stores in Spain, distributed in the country’s main cities like Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza, and Marbella. Furthermore, the brand has a presence through multi-brand retail points such as El Corte Inglés.
TwoJeys, another brand that has revolutionized the sector and cultivated its success in the online world, had two stores in Spain in 2023, in Madrid and Barcelona. In 2024, Valencia and Seville were added to these, in addition to the international openings that the jewelry brand has been inaugurating in these two years.
Another example of growth and commitment to retail, in this case of brands with jewelry tradition that continue working in the multi-brand channel, is Bea Soldado, which has several retail points in El Corte Inglés in Spain. In 2024, Bea Soldado’s jewelry is available at El Corte Inglés Goya, Madrid; El Corte Inglés Córdoba; El Corte Inglés Ronda de Córdoba; El Corte Inglés Nervión, Seville; and El Corte Inglés Jerez, Cádiz. These retail points undoubtedly reflect the brand’s expansion. Or Apodemia, which in 2024 has a total of 32 stores in Spain, and of these, 12 are spaces in El Corte Inglés. The company has experienced significant growth and plans to open 30 new stores in the country throughout this year.
Pandora, a classic in the industry, has more than 170 establishments in Spain, which include both own-brand stores and retail points in El Corte Inglés and other multi-brand distributors, compared to the approximately 100 stores it had in Spain in 2023. The Danish company has been expanding its presence in the country, inaugurating new stores as part of its strategic growth plan in the domestic market.
Swarovski has 120 stores in Spain, in addition to being present in 350 multi-brand stores. The company plans to open seven additional stores in the country before the year ends. However, in 2023, Swarovski had 82 stores in Spain. The company has been implementing a strategy to restructure and optimize its physical presence, focusing on improving locations and the quality of its stores.
In the case of Festina Group, in 2024 Festina has a solid distribution network that includes numerous multi-brand stores in Spain. Furthermore, with Time Road, the company has a combination of own-brand stores and retail points in the multi-brand channel, as well as corners in El Corte Inglés. On the other hand, Time Road has inaugurated in recent months two new retail points, one in the Westfield Parquesur Shopping Center in Madrid and another in the Westfield Glòries Shopping Center in Barcelona, the latter adding to the more than 220 stores the group has across the country.
If we talk about jewelry stores, José Luis Joyerías…