Santa Eulalia x Zara: how Inditex is exporting ‘brand Spain’
Madrid – Still amidst the buzz from the launch of the first collection by John Galliano, Zara, the main fashion chain of the Inditex (ITX) group, has surprisingly released its first capsule collection developed with the historic Barcelona-based fashion house Santa Eulalia. A benchmark today in fields as diverse as bespoke tailoring and multi-brand retail, the house has created a limited-edition capsule of shirts for the Spanish fashion multinational.
Luis Sans, president and current head of Santa Eulalia, Zara has once again defied all expectations. The brand has released a tailoring capsule collection created for it by the renowned and historic Barcelona-based fashion house. This initiative should be seen in the context of the centenary celebrations of its first runway show, which took place in Barcelona in 1926. The anniversary has already led to a diverse series of activations and launches. This follows Santa Eulalia's usual practice of persistently enriching its offering with exclusive pieces, both of its own creation and those developed uniquely for the house by fashion and accessory brands. This dynamic allows it to continue writing new chapters in its history as a fashion house. It also enables Santa Eulalia to maintain its position as one of the most representative multi-brand fashion retailers in Spain and across Europe.
Delving into this dichotomy, these were precisely the issues we discussed during our meeting with Luis Sans, which resulted in the interview published this past Friday, October 9. During our conversation, it was particularly highlighted how Santa Eulalia continues to dedicate part of its efforts to creating its own pieces, a practice carried out in its bespoke menswear tailoring workshop. “What we offer in tailoring is quite exceptional,” noted Sans, emphasising the distinctive character that this in-house tailoring workshop still holds within the store's operations. He described it as the “largest currently in Spain.” This workshop is the heir to the extraordinary savoir-faire that Santa Eulalia has cultivated since its founding in Barcelona in 1843, which ITX and Zara are now set to export and internationalise.
To this end, both have participated in developing an international tailoring capsule for the Spanish fashion multinational, created by the historic Barcelona-based fashion house. This is an unexpected collaboration with which Santa Eulalia is reversing its usual collaboration policy. Now, it is the one exporting its savoir-faire and showcasing it beyond the walls of 93 Passeig de Gràcia in Barcelona. With this move, Zara and ITX once again demonstrate their role not only as builders but also as exporters of what is commonly known as ‘brand Spain’. They highlight this role by partnering with one of Europe's oldest fashion houses, taking their connection with historic Spanish fashion guarantors of fine craftsmanship a step further. The best example of this approach until now was Zara's collaboration with the Madrid-based firm Castellano 1920 to sell a shoe collection at its Zara Man store in Madrid.
Six limited-edition tailoring shirts
Thus, continuing to polish its heritage as a fashion house, Santa Eulalia has collaborated with Zara's design team to create a menswear tailoring capsule composed entirely of shirts. These limited-edition pieces have now been added to the current season's offering from the menswear line of ITX's main fashion brand. The chain has launched and put them on sale under the title ‘Santa Eulalia Barcelona 1843 x Zara’. This special capsule collection will be sold in the key European markets where Zara operates.
As far as is known, the capsule is available through Zara's official online store and in a selection of the chain's brick and mortar stores in countries such as France, the UK, Germany, Italy and, of course, Spain. The capsule consists of a total of six men's tailored shirt models. All pieces are on sale for a single price of 59.95 euros per garment. Each shirt is made from a different coloured fabric and features a variety of up to five different collar styles. This is the main distinguishing feature of each garment in this tailoring capsule. The collection includes: a slim-fit cotton shirt in sky blue with a spread collar; a striped slim-fit shirt with a contrasting white semi-spread collar; a regular-fit white cotton shirt with a pointy collar; a regular-fit shirt made of washed indigo cotton chambray with a button-down collar, available in dark and light indigo blue; and finally, a slim-fit pink cotton shirt with a hidden button-down collar.
“Santa Eulalia, the historic Barcelona house founded in 1843, has collaborated with the Zara team on six limited-edition shirts, each conceived under the principles and exceptional savoir-faire of bespoke tailoring,” notes Zara's management regarding this latest collaborative capsule, which invigorates its current offering for the start of the autumn/winter 2026/2027 season. The capsule joins recent launches by Zara with Aaron Levine; 0Fr. Paris; Ridar; Fruit of the Loom; Martin Parr; and the duo Baisi-Guadagnino. These collaborations are allowing the chain to enrich and diversify its offering beyond its own seasonal collection launches, which now include the Re{form} line by John Galliano. This time, in partnership with Santa Eulalia, it presents “a curated selection of shirts rooted in shirt-making tradition, characterised by refined craftsmanship and distinctive details.”