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Castro's path
Sixty Years of Castro
Castro Model, Israel's leading fashion chain, consists of 138 stores - 33 Women's stores, 33 Men's stores, 62 Combined stores, 8 Outlet stores and 2 dedicated Shoes & Bags stores. Over the years, Castro has developed a winning combination of traits, making it a fashion leader while meeting the highest international quality standards, with special emphasis on constant improvement and innovation. Castro does not compromise on quality, courtesy to customers, service, design, fashion and value. You, the customer, are always at the central.
Castro, a Family Business - It All Begins at Home
Aaron Castro, founder of the company, was born in Saloniki, Greece. In 1933, as a young boy, he emigrated with his family to Israel. For the Castro household, fashion and textiles were a way of life. Upon their arrival in Israel, Aaron's mother, Anina, a graduate of the Greek School of Fashion, founded a dress boutique in their small apartment on Hertzel Street, Tel-Aviv. "In today's terms, she was a fashion designer in every sense of the word", explains Aaron Castro. "She employed 15 seamstresses, and used to take the measurements and choose the patterns herself."
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Castro, The '50s - The Beginning
Aaron Castro finished his service in the Israel Defense Forces in the early 1950s. Having grown up among tape measures, fabrics and chalk, he too then turned to the fashion business: He opened a small corner shop in Tel-Aviv; recruited his mother; and named the business after her - "Nina". Over time, the small business expanded, and the building's basement was turned into a small factory, manufacturing ready-to-wear apparel. The store's name was changed to "Castro". Aaron Castro influenced his mother's design decisions, infusing her work with a fresh and young spirit.
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Castro, the '60s - Flower Power
During the '60s, collections became more and more romantic, and included flower prints, bold colors and batik fabrics. Aaron Castro successfully sold his merchandise to Israel's then most prestigious stores, as well as to the most important department stores - Hamashbir and Shekem. The approach he took towards the customer was novel, even revolutionary, for that time: "Give the customer what he wants and not what you think he wants". This motto, strongly instilled in the Castro organization to this very day, means making the company accessible to customers and responsive to their needs. The practical outcome was a transition to direct marketing and the launch of "Rio" in 1965. This factory outlet, in Tel-Aviv, was managed by Lina, Aaron Castro's wife.
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Castro, the '70s - Changes and Expansion
During the disco years, Aaron Castro chose to continue with the distinct Israeli design style adopted in the '60s. All the while, he kept on top of global trends, traveling to fashion fairs around the world and buying new designs. He then enriched the Israeli spirit of his collections by reflecting that international influence. From time to time, he dared to be bold – for example, buying scraps from Carmel Carpets, Israel's leading carpet manufacturer, and fashioning them into coats. Israel's super models of the era - including Chava Levi, Batia Disenchik and Karin Donsky – were chosen to promote the collections. From the middle of the decade, brands took center stage in Israeli retail. American labels, especially on jeans, became the most popular. In 1975, when the market for local Israeli products entered a recession, Aaron Castro met the challenge by successfully exporting his merchandise to Europe.
Castro, the '80s - from Inflation to Prosperity
At the beginning of the decade, Parisian designs led world fashion trends once again. In Israel, inflation ran wild, and the financial crisis in Europe badly hurt Castro's exports. When inflation declined in 1985, Castro opened its first retail store in Tel-Aviv's main shopping street, Dizengof. The store was a huge success, becoming a major asset for the company, not only financially, but also in terms of marketing and public image. Aaron Castro decided to make retail sales in the local market the core of future business. Castro stores opened at a rapid pace, first on Tel-Aviv's main shopping streets, then around the country in shopping malls, which were fast gaining popularity. The Castro chain began to grow rapidly.
Castro, the '90s - Shaping the Chain, Growth and Expansion
During the 1990s, the Castro network of stores spread throughout Israel, employing over 1000 workers in dozens of stores. The stores themselves became larger, over 11,000 square meters in all. An enterprise once operating only locally and struggling to survive was now fast expanding and setting its sights on the world marketplace. This aggressive growth strategy centered on recruiting the most creative graduates of Israel's top design school, the Shenkar College of Design. Soon, Castro was achieving a reputation for fashion that was trendy, youthful, and high-quality but affordable. This winning combination – captured in its catchy slogan, "Designed for Desire" - appealed to a wide range of customers. Castro had, in fact, become the Israeli fashion leader. Imported fabrics and the use of super models to showcase the leading collections helped give the Castro label an international flavor. Castro continued to grow. In 1992, the company went public, raising a lot of investment capital. During the 1990s, Castro achieved national acclaim as a fashion leader, winning many prestigious awards, including Israel's fashion "Oscar " every year from 1999 through 2002. The company was also chosen to design the Israeli Olympic team's uniform for every Olimpic games ever since 1996. The Castro label of the 1990s was no longer that of a small Tel Aviv apartment basement store: Castro was now Israel's leading Fashion chain.
Castro Men
By 2000, men's fashion became a part of Castro with the creation of Castro Men. Opened in August of that year, the Castro Men product line has the same combination of characteristics that have made its women's line so appealing to Israeli women for decades -- meticulous design, innovation, quality and reasonable price. The Castro Men chain currently has 33 stores throughout Israel. Those stores meet the needs of the new-millennium modern man for whom fashion awareness has become an important part of life. Castro Men, in fact, is now Israel's leading men's brand.
Castro Tel-Aviv
February 2003 saw the opening of Castro Tel-Aviv, a unique fashion and lifestyle complex in the heart of Israel's social, cultural and nightlife scene. The company invested over 10,000,000 NIS in this sprawling, 1050- square -meter, three-floor complex. It integrates Castro's own premier fashion brands with alternating exhibits.
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