Anthropolie/Urban Outfitters Expanding: How do we position ourselves to get one?
Although it seems like a slam dunk that we would be one of the 200 places to get an Anthropologie, we need an attractive location for either of these stores. This is a store concept that would work really well in an upscale retail area. They like lifestyle center locations.
I wasn't sure if this was the right location for this post, but it seemed the most appropriate.
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Urban Outfitters Reveals Store Penetration Points, Fourth Concept
New York City-based apparel and home accessories retailer, Urban Outfitters, operates 110 Urban Outfitters stores, 95 Anthropologie stores, and 8 Free People stores.
The Urban Outfitters customer is 18 to 30 year-old females and males in the "dating and mating" phase; products include apparel, accessories and "apartment wares"; management refers to the customer as "upscale-homeless." The Anthropologie customer is women age 30 to 45 and products are unique apparel and home accessories.
Both brands' stores average 7,000 square feet and are typically located in malls. However, the company differentiates itself by not having a solid store concept; it designs each store individually to create a boutique environment.
The company's third brand is Free People. Targeted at the 25 to 30-year-old woman; those stores are performing stellar for the company with an average of $1,000 in sales-per-square-foot. There are currently 8 Free People stores open, and the company believes full penetration is 200 stores.
Overall, the company predicts new unit growth of 21% annually for the foreseeable future. It plans for 140 new Urban Outfitters stores to reach full penetration of the chain, while Anthropologie has 200 more stores to go before that point is reached. To support this growth, the company has a new west coast distribution center opening this month.
The company's stores are typically located in upscale regional malls, urban street locales, or lifestyle centers.
The company is also in development of a completely different concept store, literally a garden center. The company sees opportunity for a well-managed chain in a market dominated by fragmentation. The company plans to differentiate itself by somehow creating a fun place to shop for plants, garden tools, outdoor furniture, and even antiques. This concept would cater to upper-income adults. The first of these stores will debut first quarter 2008, however, the company is careful in testing new concepts, so if the concept is successful, don't expect to see real store growth there until five years from now.
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