EL CORTE INGLES: THE WORLD’S BEST TOY DEPARTMENT…?
During a recent visit to see clients in Spain, I greatly enjoyed visiting an El Corte Ingles store. Anyone who has done business in Spain or with Spanish distributors will have heard plenty about the importance of this classic department store. With a group turnover of more than €15billion p.a. (across all departments), El Corte Ingles is a major force in Spanish non-food retailing, with just under 100 stores spread across Spain & Portugal primarily.
One of the things which is most satisfying with El Corte Ingles is the sheer breadth & scope of the Toy department. In the store I visited recently, the entire top floor of a very large footprint was dedicated to toys of all categories. This is much more of a rarity now than it was 20 or 30 years ago. There is no doubt that from a global perspective, the growth in e-commerce has hit department stores as hard as any retail channels, yet in Spain & Portugal El Corte Ingles is still successful and massively committed to their toy departments at the same time.
No doubt someone somewhere will read this article and argue that another store has the best toy department, but all I can say is that El Corte Ingles appears to be offering as good a toy department as any, and long may that continue!
