Myntra signs franchise deal to bring Abercrombie & Fitch, Hollister stores to India
Myntra has inked a franchise agreement to launch US apparel brands Abercrombie & Fitch and Hollister in India, marking an expansion beyond pure e-commerce into physical retail and broadening the brands' footprint in the Indian market.
What happened
Myntra signed a franchise agreement to bring US apparel brands Abercrombie & Fitch and Hollister to India, launching stores and expanding the brands' presence
Why this matters
This franchise deal establishes a replicable template for bringing additional Western apparel brands into India, opening a pipeline of partnership and licensing opportunities.
What to watch
- First store openings and chosen city/mall locations
- Pricing strategy vs. Zara/H&M (import duty pass-through)
- Store-count expansion guidance over next 12 months
- Myntra announcing additional foreign-brand franchise deals
- Same-store sales or footfall disclosures in Flipkart/Walmart filings
- Reliance Retail and Aditya Birla (TMRW/ABFRL) accelerate their own foreign-brand franchise signings to defend mall shelf space
- Myntra ramps omnichannel integration—store inventory visible online, BOPIS, app-driven loyalty tie-ins
- Mall developers (DLF, Phoenix) court Myntra for anchor youth-apparel slots in tier-1/tier-2 cities
- A&F/Hollister localize pricing and seasonal lines for Indian climate and festive demand
- Flipkart leverages Myntra brand wins to bundle fashion into broader commerce push pre-IPO