Inside Retail Asia

Cinnabon will close its final Singapore store at Ion Orchard on September 22, bringing the American cinnamon roll chain’s latest stint in the market to an end after about three years. The brand announced the closure on September 8, telling customers it was time for “one last Bon together”. “From our very first Bon to the many that followed, you have made Cinnabon part of your cravings, catch-ups, celebrations and everyday moments,” the brand wrote in an Instagram post.

Starbucks has opened its first Signing Store in Vietnam on Cao Thang Street in Ho Chi Minh City, with deaf partners working alongside other employees across store operations and customer service. The store introduces an inclusive service model that incorporates visual communication, gestures and other forms of non-verbal interaction. Set back from the main road, the Cao Thang store features a garden-style layout designed to provide a quieter environment for customers.

Nineteen months is how long Sabato De Sarno lasted as the creative director of Gucci. It’s also how long he has been without a house since Kering announced his exit in February 2025. On Monday, he got one. Shanghai-based luxury label Icicle has appointed De Sarno as its creative director. His first collection is scheduled for Autumn/Winter 2027-28, which puts a runway debut in the early next year and product on shop floors in the second half of the year.

China-based outdoor brand Kailas has opened its first European store in Chamonix, France, bringing its popular trail-running product line Kailas Fuga to the region. The location marks Kailas’s first directly operated international store and a new stage in its global expansion – moving from investment in products, events, athletes and international channels toward more localised operations.

Middle Eastern perfume house Amouage has entered Indonesia with the opening of its first standalone boutique at Plaza Indonesia in Jakarta. The boutique draws inspiration from Oman’s landscapes and traditional architecture, featuring travertine walls, walnut wood and brushed copper finishes. Display tables designed as inverted pyramids reference the country’s topography, while layered arches define the interior.

Heidi O’Neill has her work cut out for her as she takes over as Lululemon’s new CEO on September 8. With sales declining across every major region, competition intensifying and the brand losing relevance in its core Americas market, the former Nike executive must revive the product innovation and cultural authority that once set the athleisure giant apart.

For a few days in July, shoppers approaching Coles stores were met by an advertisement that looked remarkably like the supermarket’s own billboard. “Here at Coles, we’re always watching you,” it read in familiar red and white. GetUp, an Australian community advocacy organisation, had bought digital billboards near hundreds of stores as part of its campaign against Coles – one of Australia’s two dominant supermarket chains – and its relationship with contentious US technology compan mpany Palantir.

When new CEO John Ternus unveils Apple’s latest products on Wednesday, Wall Street expects him to show that the company can still deliver breakthrough hardware and a Siri virtual assistant capable of competing in the AI race. Analysts expect Apple to announce at its Cupertino, California, headquarters a new iPhone that folds open like a passport.

Zara has opened a flagship store in Seoul’s Gangnam district, spanning more than 2100sqm across three floors. The store brings together Zara Woman and Zara Man collections alongside architectural, artistic and digital elements. Designed by Zara’s Architecture Studio, the interior features stone, wood, concrete and metal, with dedicated spaces for different product categories.

China’s Icicle named Sabato De Sarno as its creative director on Monday, adding that the first collection completed under the ex-Gucci designer will be its autumn/winter 2027-2028 season. De Sarno was previously a creative director at the Gucci brand, which is owned by Kering, the French fashion major which also holds a stake in Icicle. De Sarno will oversee Icicle’s creative direction across women’s and men’s ready-to-wear clothes, as well as accessories and eyewear.