A part of Argentina has just landed in Milan. La Martina, an international sportswear brand founded in Argentina in 1985 and the official supplier of technical equipment to polo sports clubs and professionals, has opened a new concept store in Milan, as part of the brand’s new beginnings.
“La Martina is currently facing a major redesign phase. Our goal is to work consistently to make the market and consumer feel a unique brand experience centered on the polo world, through an innovative retail experience, digital operations more efficient and upgraded the collection,” explains Alessandro Santamaria, vice president, La Martina, who joined the company in September 2021, after gaining top management experience at Giglio Group, the company e-commerce in Italy and before that at Italian Touch, the multinational company in charge of e-commerce strategy for Tod’s Group.
Alessandro Santamaria
The new Milanese headquarters is located in a key shopping street in the heart of the city’s main shopping district, in Corso Garibaldi 1. It was designed by architect Fabio Novembre and will be officially inaugurated. in March, after the Milan Women’s Fashion Show.
Located next door and with access from both a shop and a separate entrance, there is the restaurant El Carnecero, a leading name in Argentinian cuisine already in another Milanese location and in Ibiza.
“From this store, we wanted to convey the true Argentinian experience. Here customers will be able to find the best of Argentinian cuisine, but can also book polo classes, as well as find the right technical support and equipment for the sport.” Santamaria continued.
Visible aged brick walls, wooden stairs, exclusive string lights hanging from the ceiling and the iconic green elements that characterize the La Martina suspension are some of the outstanding DNA features. Argentina’s most prominent in this 550 square meter estate. meter shop occupies two floors.
La Martina F/W 2023/2024
A special VIP area held upstairs welcomes, supports and embraces selected guests, accessible by a private entrance and elevator.
Identify your own DNA
Old silver trophies, framed archival polo shirts worn by iconic international polo teams and other memorabilia placed throughout the store testify to how the brand’s past lives on. and establish new relationships with today’s consumers ready to be part of the brand’s legacy and future.
Emphasizing La Martina’s authenticity and historic ties to polo shirts, the store features an area that sells helmets, boots, and other technical gear, and a space that from now on will also be featured. held in all 100 other monochrome brand stores that have existed including London, Paris, Dubai and Johannesburg, among others.
From now on, all stores will soon be redesigned according to the new Milan concept, as well as others that will open soon, including four more in Italy by the end of 2023 and two more new in Germany coming soon.
“Each store will host a space dedicated to polo with the aim of emphasizing how fundamental it has been and will continue to be devoted to it,” added Santamaria, highlighting a series of initiatives that the brand will join soon. For example, from late 2022 to early 2023, La Martine will again sponsor Abierto, the major worldwide polo tournament held in Buenos Aires, and will return to sponsor other important polo competitions.
Photo: Maria Cristina Pavarini
Classic polo exhibition La Martina
Expanding worldwide
Along with the opening of this flagship store, starting in the second half of 2023, the brand will open other stores inspired by Milanese and will gradually redesign the existing stores in accordance with this concept.
As part of its expansion plan, it will continue to expand throughout Europe, beyond Italy and Germany, its first and second most important markets, it will open a new corner in Greece, Athens, a one-stop shop. Shop in the 60-square-foot store at an important local department store in this new format.
It also expects significant results from France, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, along with the recently reopened Romanian market, which has performed well.
It also aims to strengthen its presence in Spain, but also launch in Turkey and strengthen its presence in India, where it has opened three stores by 2022 and aims to Target achieved a total of 15 stores including shop in store, monochrome. brands and direct stores by the end of 2023.
China is another target. They signed an agreement a year ago there, but they had to stop activities because of COVID. Now they’ve come back and begun a deal to design a specific, need-based product that best suits the needs of local consumers in terms of size.
They also plan to expand in Emirates and start opening some stores between Dubai and Kuwait by the end of 2023.
La Martina
“Our goal is to expand into different channels: through wholesale, retail and store-to-store, along with e-commerce, a channel that we partner with through the e-commerce platform. its own digital marketplace and many other digital markets,” explains Santamaria emphasizing how in 2022 they registered +15% year-over-year growth, although they did not disclose any sales. exactly what.
What you see is less than what you get
“Our founder Lando Simonetti likes to say about Milan’s flagship store: ‘What you see in this store is much less than what you don’t see,’ explains Santamaria, referring to the cabling important and additional technology that the store is already equipped with.
“Thanks to hidden cabling and specific digital services, this store will be able to be accessed virtually thanks to augmented reality technology. Visitors can also connect, support special polo camps or training sessions from other key locations, such as our ‘Home’ store in Buenos Ayres, the first to open. about 20 years ago, but also through our store Santamaria explains.
La Martina
In addition, a range of services will also be provided to customers shopping inside the store, who can also purchase products that are not available in the store but can be delivered in about two days to the home or at store.
Along with that, retailers will also be able to benefit from the company’s growing digitization offerings, such as marketing materials that they can download for their stores and display outside. in their own stores, but also benefit from services such as “endless shelves” through which they can order and have products delivered seamlessly to their stores.
Among the 800 multi-brand stores and 100 single-brand stores globally, almost half of the 265 Italian customers can benefit from this service and more and more single-brand, multi-brand stores and corners are opened inside department stores.
Product repositioning
The brand was founded in 1985 in Buenos Aires by Lando Simonetti, an Italian businessman who grew up in Argentina, together with Gachi Ferrari, offering a collection of about 300 pieces of which 80% are for men. It consists of two main collections, Guards, inspired by the British soul of the brand as it bears the name of the Royal polo team, and a main line, which focuses on overall high-end sportswear with products. The best-selling was the polo shirt, a garment that the brand’s founder began sponsoring at a time when it was not a common practice during polo events.
“We are specialist in technical apparel for polo and our founder has studied the development of technical apparel. As part of our redesign, our key piece was the classic polo shirt. In particular, we are focusing our attention on the 1942 model, our iconic haute-de-gamme with a central logo made of jersey fabric rather than piqué,” explains Santamaria.
Completing the offer are footwear and accessories, respectively manufactured under license agreements by two specialized companies, Giano and Principe.
La Martina
“In addition, footwear and accessories will face a restructuring focusing on cleaner looks and a more urban attitude,” added Santamaria, noting that many new exciting projects will be coming soon. disclosure.
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