Pursuits
Zara's Fast-Fashion Edge
Zara, flagship of the world’s No. 1 clothing retailer, manages a network of factories that allows it to get styles into stores faster than rivals. Is this retail’s future?
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Arteixo is a small town in northwestern Spain near the Atlantic, surrounded by fishing villages. In its center, a glass building sits amid acres of green lawn. It’s the headquarters of Zara, the company that introduced the idea of fast fashion some two decades ago, then developed a highly centralized and often studied—but rarely duplicated—design, manufacturing, and distribution system. The building is officially known as the Cube. Those who work there think of it as the brain.