DeFacto (retailer)

Turkish retail clothing company

DeFacto Perakende A.Ş

Industry| Apparel retailing and manufacturing
Founded| 2003
Founder| Zeki Cemal Özen
Headquarters| Halkalı Merkez(tr), Küçükçekmece,

Istanbul

Turkey

Number of locations

| c. 500[1]

Key people

| İhsan Ateş (CEO)
Products| Clothing
Revenue| US$1.05 billion (2023)

Number of employees

| c. 13.000 [1]
Website| corporate.defacto.com.tr

DeFacto is a Turkish retail clothing company founded in 2003. It is the second-largest clothing company in Turkey, active in 30+ countries and operating with nearly 500 stores globally.[2]

Based in the Halkalı Merkez neighborhood of Küçükçekmece, Istanbul, the company's official name is DeFacto Perakende Ticaret A.Ş.[3]

## History

[edit]

Exterior of DeFacto store at Grand Pera mall, İstiklal Avenue, Istanbul Multiple entrances of DeFacto Grand Pera One of the entrances at DeFacto Grand Pera DeFacto Kids store at Grand Pera Old logo of DeFacto

DeFacto was founded in 2003 by Zeki Cemal Özen, the owner of Ozan Tekstil. Their present CEO is İhsan Ateş,[4] who started his career at LC Waikiki.[2] The company introduced four distinct brands – Captain Hook, DeFacto, Chale, and Sweater – served to customers through 350 retail outlets in Merter. Ozon Clothing leveraged its expertise in production, while outsourcing marketing, retail, sales, and design. Other brands were phased out to concentrate solely on the DeFacto brand of men's, women's, and children's wear, for the first two years without its own retail stores.[5]

In 2003, the company's market data showed that only 6% of customers were willing to spend more than 50 Turkish lira on shirts. DeFacto saw this as an opportunity and, using Ozon Giyim's production capabilities, the brand launched both its products and retail store formats. It defines its market niche as "Mediterranean comfort".[5]

The company opened its first store outside of Turkey, in Kazakhstan, in 2013.[5]

From 2010 to 2015, DeFacto had an average annual growth rate of 49%. In 2014, annual sales reached 1.18 billion Turkish lira (TRY) (about US$540 million) and 146 million TRY in operating profit (about US$71 million). Employee numbers reached 5,932. At the time, it had 20 stores in 4 countries outside Turkey: 12 in Kazakhstan, 5 in Iraq, 2 in Egypt and 1 in Belarus.[6] It aimed to close 2015 with sales of 1.631 billion TRY (about US$600 million).[7][8]

In 2015, DeFacto opened its first store in Morocco, in Marrakesh and the following year had opened 5 stores in that country.[9] It also opened a design office in Barcelona.

As of September 2015, DeFacto had 277 stores in about 63 cities in Turkey and 50 abroad, with the company's Sustainability Report indicating presence in at least nine countries.[8]

In 2016, DeFacto acquired 24 C&A-branded stores of the company C&A Moda Ticaret AŞ.[10][11] As of that year, the stores with the highest sales were the ones in Baghdad, Federal Iraq.[9]

In 2018, 30% of the company shares were offered to the public.[12] The same year, DeFacto opened stores in Pakistan and Malaysia, bringing the total number of countries to 24 including Turkey, and 125 stores outside Turkey.[13]

In 2023, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) invested US$59 million into DeFacto.[14][15] Franklin Templeton is another investor.[10][16]

## Geographic presence

[edit]

Countries with DeFacto stores as of 2024 Year  | Stores in  | Coun-
tries
with
stores
[17] |

|
|
|

Tur-
key  | Other  | Total
2013 |  |  |  | 2 | [5]
2015 | 277 | 51 | 327 | ≥ 9 | [8]
2016 |  |  | 419 | 17 | [9]
2018 |  | 125 |  | 24 | [13]
2024 |  |  | ±500 | ±31 | [1]

As of 2024, DeFacto stores operate in Turkey and 33 other countries (launch year in each country in parentheses/brackets if known):[18]

* Central Asia (5): Kazakhstan (2013), Kyrgyzstan,[19] Tajikistan,[20] Turkmenistan,[21] Uzbekistan (2021)[22]
* Middle East (6): Iraq (Federal[23] and Kurdish autonomous region[24]), Jordan,[25] Lebanon,[26] Oman,[27] Palestine,[28] Qatar,[29] Bahrain [30]
* North Africa (4): Algeria,[31] Egypt,[32] Libya,[33] Morocco (2015)[9]
* Europe (12): Albania, Azerbaijan,[34] Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus (Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus),[35] Georgia, Germany, Kosovo,[36] Moldova,[37] Russia, Serbia, Ukraine (2021)[38]
* South Asia (2): Afghanistan,[39] Pakistan
* sub-Saharan Africa (4): DPR Congo,[40] Mauritius,[41] Somalia,[42] Tanzania[43]

As of the end of 2017, DeFacto had 324 stores in Turkey and 123 stores in 21 other countries,[44] including Malaysia[45][46][47][48] Saudi Arabia[49][50][51] and Tunisia[52][53] which as of 2024 are no longer operating. A store in Bulgaria at Serdika Center Sofia (Bulgarian: Сердика Център) has since also opened and closed.[54][55]

As of 2024, DeFacto has around 500 stores[18] and 13,000 employees.[56]

## Brands

[edit]

(Sub-)brands include:[56]

* DeFacto Baby
* DeFacto Kids
* DeFacto Fit - activewear and fitness apparel
* DeFacto Coool - young, trendy, casual, affordable
* DeFacto Life - lifestyle-oriented, broader demographic: comfort, everyday wear
* DeFacto Modest - provides more coverage of the body, thus aligning with certain cultural or religious dress codes while still aiming to be stylish and modern
* DeFacto Plus - offers larger sizes
* DeFacto Studio - more refined and sophisticated, high-quality, elegant, contemporary, for both professional and social settings

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c "Corporate - DeFacto". DeFacto corporate site. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
2. ^ a b https://corporate.defacto.com.tr/docs/DeFacto_ER_2023_EN.pdf
3. ^ "DeFacto Perakende Ticaret AS". Bloomberg. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
4. ^ "2 millions de nos unités sont fabriquées sous le label Made in Morocco" (PDF). ECO: Les Inspirations (in French). 14 October 2022. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
5. ^ a b c d "Profesyonellerin şirketi nasıl büyüdü? - Capital". Capital Online (in Turkish). Retrieved 2024-05-15.
6. ^ "US Dollar to Turkish Lira Spot Exchange Rates for 2015". exchangerates.org.uk. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
7. ^ "Turkish Lira to US Dollar Spot Exchange Rates for 2014". exchangerates.org.uk. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
8. ^ a b c "Sustainability Report 2014–2015" (PDF). DeFacto corporate site. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
9. ^ a b c d ""17 ülkede mağazamız var, sadece Türkiye'de dövizle kira ödüyoruz!" [We have stores in 17 countries, we only pay rent in foreign currency in Turkey!"]. NTV (in Turkish). Retrieved 16 May 2024.
10. ^ a b "DeFacto". Pitchbook. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
11. ^ "CA'nın Defacto tarafından devralınmasına izin çıktı". NTV (in Turkish). Anadolu. 26 September 2016. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
12. ^ "Turkish clothing retailer DeFacto to list up to 29.81 percent -draft prospectus". Reuters. 20 March 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
13. ^ a b "DeFacto iki ülkede ilk mağazasını açtı: DeFacto, Pakistan ve Malezya'da açılan yeni mağazaları ile Uzak Doğu ve Orta Asya'daki büyümesini sürdürüyor" [DeFacto opened its first store in two countries: DeFacto continues its growth in the Far East and Central Asia with its new stores opened in Pakistan and Malaysia.]. Dünya (in Turkish). 30 March 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
14. ^ "Defacto (f. Project De Jure III)". EBRD. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
15. ^ "EBRD Acquires Equity Stake in Turkish Retail Giant DeFacto". Office for Investment, Presidency, Turkiye. 2 January 2023. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
16. ^ "DeFacto: "Our global success..."". Across magazine. 7 November 2023. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
17. ^ including Turkey
18. ^ a b "Corporate - DeFacto". DeFacto Corporate website. Retrieved 2024-05-15.
19. ^ "DeFacto". Asiamall, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan (in Russian). Retrieved 17 May 2024.
20. ^ "DeFacto Tajikistan". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
21. ^ "DeFacto Turkmenistan". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
22. ^ "DeFacto Uzbekistan". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
23. ^ "DeFacto Al-Mansour (Federal Iraq)". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
24. ^ "Irak Erbil Gulan Mall mağazamız kapılarını açtı!" [One of our stores opens in Erbil, Iraq's Gulan Mall]. Instagram site of DeFacto careers. Instagram. 5 August 2023. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
25. ^ "DeFacto Jodran". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
26. ^ "DeFacto Lebanon". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
27. ^ "Stores and Assets". Muscat Grand Mall. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
28. ^ "DeFacto Palestine". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
29. ^ "DeFacto Doha Qatar". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
30. ^ Release, Press. "Turkish fashion brand DeFacto to open first Bahrain branch at Seef Mall – Seef District". www.zawya.com. Retrieved 2024-12-03.
31. ^ "DeFacto Algeria". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
32. ^ "DeFacto Egypt". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
33. ^ "DeFacto Libya". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
34. ^ "DeFacto Azerbaijan". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
35. ^ "DeFacto Cyprus". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
36. ^ "DeFacto Kosovo". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
37. ^ "DeFacto". Shopping MalDOVA. 5 September 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
38. ^ Kara, Bestenigar (16 August 2021). "DeFacto launches stores in Ukraine and Uzbekistan". TR MONITOR. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
39. ^ "DeFacto Afghanistan". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
40. ^ "DeFacto Kinshasa". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
41. ^ "DeFacto Mauritius". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
42. ^ "DeFacto Somalia". Facebook. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
43. ^ "DeFacto Tanzania". Instagram. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
44. ^ "Defacto halka arza hazırlanıyor". CNN Türk (in Turkish). 21 March 2018. Retrieved 2024-05-15.
45. ^ "DeFacto Paradigm Mall Johor Baru (permanently closed)". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
46. ^ "DeFacto IOI Mall (permanently closed)". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
47. ^ "DeFacto at Tropicana Gardens (permanently closed)". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
48. ^ "DeFacto Ecocheras Mall (permanently closed)". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
49. ^ "DeFacto Jeddah, Sahara Mall (permanently closed)". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
50. ^ "DeFacto Jeddah, Red Sea Mall (permanently closed)". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
51. ^ "DeFacto, Riyadh". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
52. ^ "DeFacto, Sousse (permanently closed)". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
53. ^ "DeFacto, Tunis (permanently closed)". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
54. ^ "DeFacto, Serdika Tsentr, Sofia, Bulgaria". Google Maps. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
55. ^ "Магазини" [Stores]. Serdika Center. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
56. ^ a b "Corporate - DeFacto". DeFacto Corporate website. Retrieved 2024-05-15.