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Flagship stores

Flagship stores, or simply flagships, are main stores from retailers designed to serve a mainstream of customers. Most noticeably, flagships are found in prominent shopping districts (e.g., Ginza, Madison Avenue, etc.) that are targets for a main set of worldwide high-income shoppers. Because of this, shopping at an upscale flagship is seen as high social/economic status. Flagships are, as well, larger in retail size (bigger than its retailer's outlets and in mall stores) and hold the most volumes in merchandise. These stores become a more preferred shopping destination for the retailers' goods. Flagships are meant to overshadow its sister stores in its area.

For example, the brand Abercrombie & Fitch holds 359 mall stores in the U.S. and operates two flagships in the country: one on Fifth Avenue and one at The Grove at Farmers Market to serve people on the east coast and the west coast of the U.S. (respectively). The brand also marked expansion into the United Kingdom with a flagship in Savile Row and will add stores around the flagship. Meanwhile, it is preparing to launch a flagship in Ginza to mark Asian expansion.

Many other upscale retailers operate flagships worldwide. This includes but is not limited to the following brands: Prada, Louis Vuitton, Polo Ralph Lauren (which claims its flagship in Tokyo, Japan to be a milestone for the brand), Dior, and The Apple Store among numerous others. The A&F brand, Hollister Co., is slated to open its first flagship by 2009.