Sales jump for Zara owner Inditex as it taps into AI for virtual changing rooms

The Spanish fashion giant behind brands Zara and Pull&Bear has revealed a jump in sales and profits last year, as it taps into new technology and artificial intelligence (AI) to attract modern-day shoppers.

Inditex said total sales reached 39.9 billion euros (£34.5 billion) in 2025, up 7% compared with 2024, at constant currency rates.

Sales across all its fashion brands, including Massimo Dutti, Bershka and Stradivarius, grew year-on-year.

The retail group said its spring and summer collections were selling well with store and online sales increasing by 9% between February and March 8, compared with the same period in 2024.

Inditex, which is one of the world’s largest fashion retailers and viewed by many investors as a bellwether of the high street, makes most of its sales in Europe but also has a large market in the US.

At the end of the year, it had 5,460 stores around the world.

Its pre-tax profit increased by 5.8% to eight billion euros (£6.9 billion), of which about 5.6 billion euros (£4.8 billion) was generated from the Zara fashion and homeware chain.

Inditex’s stronger financial performance indicates signs of strength on the high street after a bruising year for the UK, with retailers including Claire’s Accessories, River Island, Russell & Bromley and Quiz either collapsing into administration or closing stores.

Inditex said it has been focused on improving the quality of its store estate, including refurbishments and making more popular stores bigger, while closing or relocating those that were less profitable.

It has rolled out new security technology in stores, replacing security tags with tiny chips amid efforts to deter shoplifters and streamline the shopping experience for customers.

The company also highlighted its AI-based virtual fitting experience, named Zara Try-on, which since December has let customers create an avatar from their own photos and generate images of the avatar wearing real products.

Inditex said the technology is deployed in 43 global markets with more than seven million sessions so far, and is being rolled out to other brands.

Chief executive Oscar Garcia Maceiras, said the latest results “reflect the ability of our teams to honour the trust that millions of customers place in our eight commercial formats every day”.

“Connecting with them, understanding their desires and delivering the best product and a differentiated experience underpin our long-term growth expectations.”