Joe Fresh Expands Internationally

The Candadian brand Joe Fresh is getting ready to launch its first stores overseas in spring 2014. Mario Grauso, chief operating officer, said the first international units will debut "sooner, rather than later."

Joe Fresh is also about to open its sixth store in Manhattan's SoHo neighborhood next week with more to come. The company plans to grow beyond New York City and cluster stores in other major U.S. cities.

But there is definitely still room for growth in New York, said Joe Mimran, president of Joseph Mimran & Associates Inc. and creative director of the Joe Fresh brand for Loblaw Cos. Ltd., which owns it. "We looked at Manhattan and put a marker in each individual neighborhood and chose neighborhoods that the brand could really resonate in," said Mimran, who founded Joe Fresh. "There are a few more places" such as the Upper West Side and Meatpacking District. "We think of New York as a country unto itself. We're always looking at new neighborhoods that are emerging."

One area that Joe Fresh has focused on is Brooklyn. "What's happened there in the last five years is amazing," Mimran said. The store is expected to open there in early 2015, although an address has yet to be confirmed.

As for their international expansion, Grauso said, "We want to be meaningful in foreign markets. We're looking to do multiple stores and we're absolutely entertaining partnerships because that's the only way to progress in a speedy manner. Of course, we'll go to Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Asia will be the first stop for us. I'm already [having] those meetings."

Mimran added: "Brands today really have to play at global positioning. If you notice how the competition is shaping up, it's coming from all of the global players. Whether you're global or not, you'd better start thinking globally. We have to be in that frame of mind. We are going to be in that frame of mind. We've begun to build a correct team for growth internationally - global growth. We've had tremendous success in Canada and in New York and that gives us the confidence to move forward with a model."