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Primark to Open First Dubai Store

A woman speaks on her mobile phone as she browses a shop for new clothes ahead of the start of the Eid al-Fitr festival in Dubai on March 16, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
A woman speaks on her mobile phone as she browses a shop for new clothes ahead of the start of the Eid al-Fitr festival in Dubai on March 16, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
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Primark to Open First Dubai Store

A woman speaks on her mobile phone as she browses a shop for new clothes ahead of the start of the Eid al-Fitr festival in Dubai on March 16, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
A woman speaks on her mobile phone as she browses a shop for new clothes ahead of the start of the Eid al-Fitr festival in Dubai on March 16, 2026. (Photo by AFP)

Budget fashion retailer Primark has confirmed it will press ahead with opening its first Dubai store on Thursday despite the ongoing US-Israeli war with Iran, during which the emirate has been hit by Iranian missiles and drones.

Primark, owned by London-listed Associated British Foods, and its ⁠franchise partner Alshaya ⁠Group will open the store in Dubai Mall.

Primark and Alshaya plan to open two more stores in Dubai - at City Centre ⁠Mirdif in April and Mall of the Emirates in May.

Dubai's malls have seen a sharp fall in visitors since the Iran war began, reflecting a collapse in tourism.

Primark and Alshaya plan to open stores in Bahrain and Qatar by ⁠the ⁠end of the year.

Primark entered the Middle East with a store in Kuwait in October last year.

As of the end of January, Primark traded from about 475 stores in 18 countries across the UK, Europe, the Middle East and the US.

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Fashion

ASOS Posts 50% Profit Jump as Cost Cuts Overshadow Merchandise Value Dip

FILE PHOTO: People walk past the ASOS pop-up store in London, Britain, November 12, 2025. REUTERS/Hannah McKay/File Photo/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People walk past the ASOS pop-up store in London, Britain, November 12, 2025. REUTERS/Hannah McKay/File Photo/File Photo
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ASOS Posts 50% Profit Jump as Cost Cuts Overshadow Merchandise Value Dip

FILE PHOTO: People walk past the ASOS pop-up store in London, Britain, November 12, 2025. REUTERS/Hannah McKay/File Photo/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: People walk past the ASOS pop-up store in London, Britain, November 12, 2025. REUTERS/Hannah McKay/File Photo/File Photo

ASOS reported a nearly 50% jump in first-half adjusted core profit on Wednesday, as cost cuts overshadowed a 9% decline in gross merchandise value, and helped lift gross margins.

The online fashion retailer has been trying to revive its fast-fashion ⁠appeal among its ⁠core twenty-something shoppers, while sharpening its focus on profitability through tighter cost control amid intensifying competition from cheaper Chinese rivals.

British retailers have ⁠been squeezed by weaker consumer spending as high inflation has curbed discretionary purchases.

UK inflation held steady at 3% in February, official figures showed on Wednesday, ahead of a likely uptick as the Middle East war pushes prices higher.

According to Reuters, ASOS said ⁠its ⁠GMV decline improved sequentially through the reported period, with its largest market - the UK - outperforming the group with a 5% decline.

The company also reiterated its annual profit guidance of 150 million pounds ($200.7 million)-180 million pounds.

Fashion

Paris Appeals Court Rejects Government's Request for Suspension of Shein's Marketplace

(FILES) This photograph shows the logo of Asian e-commerce giant Shein in its stall at the Bazar de l'Hotel de Ville (BHV) department store in Paris on November 4, 2025. (Photo by Julie SEBADELHA / AFP)
(FILES) This photograph shows the logo of Asian e-commerce giant Shein in its stall at the Bazar de l'Hotel de Ville (BHV) department store in Paris on November 4, 2025. (Photo by Julie SEBADELHA / AFP)
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Paris Appeals Court Rejects Government's Request for Suspension of Shein's Marketplace

(FILES) This photograph shows the logo of Asian e-commerce giant Shein in its stall at the Bazar de l'Hotel de Ville (BHV) department store in Paris on November 4, 2025. (Photo by Julie SEBADELHA / AFP)
(FILES) This photograph shows the logo of Asian e-commerce giant Shein in its stall at the Bazar de l'Hotel de Ville (BHV) department store in Paris on November 4, 2025. (Photo by Julie SEBADELHA / AFP)

A Paris Court of Appeal on Thursday rejected the French government's request to suspend Chinese online platform Shein's marketplace, defeating an appeal by the state after a Paris court ruled against the government in December.

Shein has ⁠been embroiled in ⁠a scandal since France's consumer watchdog DGCCRF found sex dolls resembling children and banned weapons for sale ⁠on its marketplace last year, prompting the government to attempt to suspend the platform.

In December, a Paris court had rejected the government's request to suspend the Shein site in France as a ⁠whole ⁠for three months, saying it would be "disproportionate", prompting the government to appeal the ruling.

Shein banned all sex dolls and suspended the adult products category from its marketplace globally on November 3 after the consumer watchdog's findings.

Fashion

Zara Taps British Designer John Galliano for Partnership

Signage hangs at a Zara store in Granada on March 15, 2025. (AFP)
Signage hangs at a Zara store in Granada on March 15, 2025. (AFP)
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Zara Taps British Designer John Galliano for Partnership

Signage hangs at a Zara store in Granada on March 15, 2025. (AFP)
Signage hangs at a Zara store in Granada on March 15, 2025. (AFP)

Spanish fashion retailer Zara said Tuesday it has entered into a two-year "artistic partnership" with controversial British designer John Galliano.

The 65-year-old couturier will reconfigure pieces drawn from Zara's past collections into new designs, the company said in a statement.

"Guided by a haute couture process and approach, the collections will be unveiled each season throughout the duration of the partnership, starting in September 2026," it added without giving further details.

Zara is owned by Inditex, the world's leading low-cost fashion retailer which posted a record annual profit in 2025 for the third year running.

"To deliver fashion through that enormous platform -- that, of course, that's thrilling. And to be able to work with the kind of resources they have as well, that's equally thrilling," Galliano told fashion magazine Vogue.

Galliano, who previously headed artistry at Givenchy and Christian Dior, has dressed countless celebrities during his tenure, including Kim Kardashian, Kary Perry and Zendaya for red-carpet events.

Known for his flamboyant personality and daring designs, Galliano's career suffered a dramatic setback in 2011 following a drunken rant in a Paris bar where he hurled antisemitic and racist insults at the other patrons.

He was subsequently dismissed from Dior, underwent rehab in Switzerland and apologized for his behavior during a visit to the Central Synagogue in London.

Gibraltar-born Galliano returned to the fashion world in 2014 when he joined French label Maison Margiela as its creative director, a position he held until 2024.

With fast-growing budget fashion retailer Shein taking share at the cheaper end of the market, Zara has moved to attract more discerning shoppers and offered more expensive clothing in recent years.