100-624: Centrale is a shopping centre in Croydon , South London , one of the largest covered retail developments in London. It is owned and managed by Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and was opened in 2004. Plans were announced in January 2013 to redevelop Centrale and combine it with the Whitgift Centre . Centrale is located on North End, Croydon , facing the Whitgift Centre . It was developed from
200-507: A 43-storey tower, began on Wellesley Road in 2011 and was completed in 2016. Other developments with towers over 50 floors high have been given planning approval. These include the 54-storey "Menta Tower" in Cherry Orchard Road near East Croydon station, and a 55-storey tower at One Lansdowne Road, on which construction was set to begin in early 2013. The latter is set to be Britain's tallest block of flats, including office space,
300-687: A country and ordering it to rectify the situation immediately. In September 2019, Zara supported Hong Kong strikes; however after pressures from Chinese social media Zara was forced to issue a statement expressing its support of the "one country, two systems" policy adopted by China in ruling Hong Kong, and its disapproval of anti-government strikes. In 2020, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute accused at least 82 major brands, including Zara, of being connected to forced Uyghur labor in Xinjiang . In June 2021,
400-478: A decline, finally closing in 1959. By the 1950s, with its continuing growth, the town was becoming congested , and the Council decided on another major redevelopment scheme. The Croydon Corporation Act was passed in 1956. This, coupled with national government incentives for office relocation out of Central London, led to the building of new offices and accompanying road schemes through the late 1950s and 1960s, and
500-602: A dozen company-owned factories in Spain (particularly in Galicia ), Portugal (northern part) and Turkey . Clothes with a longer shelf life, such as basic T-shirts, are outsourced to low-cost suppliers, mainly in Asia. The company can design a new product and have finished goods in its stores in four to five weeks; it can modify existing items in as little as two weeks, which results from its advanced operation management. Shortening
600-618: A four-star hotel and a health club. In May 2012 it was announced that Croydon had been successful in its bid to become one of twelve " Portas Pilot " towns and would receive a share of £1.2m funding to help rejuvenate its central shopping areas. In November 2013, Central Croydon MP Gavin Barwell gave a presentation at a public meeting on the Croydon regeneration project, detailing various developments underway due to be completed in coming years. On 26 November 2013, Croydon Council approved
700-490: A halt for stage coaches on the road south of London. At the beginning of the 19th century, Croydon became the terminus of two pioneering commercial transport links with London. The first, opened in 1803, was the horse-drawn Surrey Iron Railway from Wandsworth , which in 1805 was extended to Merstham , as the Croydon, Merstham and Godstone Railway. The second, opened in 1809, was the Croydon Canal , which branched off
800-452: A handful of complaints given the large volume of traffic they receive on their site. When the news was picked up by media outlets, Inditex, Zara's owning company, stated that the items in question have been suspended from sale, and that they are in contact with Bassen's lawyer to clarify and address the issue. As of April 2018, MaXhosa by Laduma is taking legal action against Zara for copying its designs. Zara responded to complaints from
900-466: A large, new one billion pound shopping centre, in the form of a new Westfield shopping mall to add to the two which the company currently has in Greater London; Westfield plans to work jointly with Hammerson and to incorporate the best aspects of the two companies' designs. In November 2017, Croydon Council gave permission for the new Westfield shopping centre to be built and in January 2018,
1000-519: A nearby schoolhouse and schoolmaster's house. There was a Warden in charge of the well-being of the almoners. The building takes the form of a courtyard surrounded by the chambers of the almoners and various offices. Threatened by various reconstruction plans and road-widening schemes, the Almshouses were saved in 1923 by intervention of the House of Lords . On 21 June 1983 Queen Elizabeth II visited
1100-501: A number of concessions including Yo! Sushi . Recent reports suggest that the remaining un-let units in the centre will be opened to exclusive outlets opening their first London stores outside the West End . The centre also houses a Mecca Bingo establishment. It also has a 168,000 sq ft (15,600 m) House of Fraser , 21,000 sq ft (2,000 m) Zara and 51,000 sq ft (4,700 m) Next all of which
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#17327837115301200-563: A pageant held at Lloyd Park and an exhibition held at the old Croydon Aerodrome. The growing town attracted many new buildings. The Fairfield Halls arts centre and event venue opened in 1962. Croydon developed as an important centre for shopping, with the construction of the Whitgift Centre in 1969. No. 1 Croydon (formerly the NLA Tower) designed by Richard Seifert & Partners was completed in 1970. The Warehouse Theatre opened in 1977. The 1990s saw further changes intended to give
1300-462: A period of six months to solve them. In November 2017, customers shopping at Zara stores in Istanbul, Turkey, found handwritten notes purportedly from Turkish workers in the pockets of in-store garments asking shoppers to pressure Zara into paying them unpaid wages. The company clarified the unpaid wages were due to a third-party manufacturer Bravo Tekstil, who had failed to pay their employees in
1400-565: A popular society venue attracting crowds to its fêtes . One widely publicised event was a "Grand Scottish Fete" on 16 September 1834 "with a tightrope performance by Pablo Fanque , the black circus performer who would later dominate the Victorian circus and achieve immortality in the Beatles song, Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite! " The spa closed in 1856 soon after the opening nearby of
1500-562: A pre-owned platform will also be launched via its website and app in UK. Other than posting now-unwanted Zara purchases online for sale, shoppers can book repairs and donate unwanted items online or via a store. If successful, this service will be expanded to other key markets. Starting November 2022, Russians will be able to order products online from a range U.S. and European brands, including Nike, Zara and H&M, according to an announcement from Russia's postal service. September 11, 2024 – Zara
1600-695: A redevelopment of the Town Centre by The Croydon Partnership, a joint venture by the Westfield Group and Hammerson. London Mayor Boris Johnson approved the plan the following day. The Croydon Advertiser listed the approval as an "Historic Night for Croydon". At Ruskin Square , a Boxpark made of sea containers opened in 2016 as a temporary measure until new buildings are constructed for shops, offices and housing. The London Evening Standard said that this and other developments were reviving
1700-489: A score of 90%. The Zotefoams company has its headquarters in Croydon. For centuries the area lay within the Wallington hundred , an ancient Anglo-Saxon administrative division of the county of Surrey . In the later Middle Ages – probably from the late 13th century onwards – residents of the town of Croydon, as defined by boundary markers known as the "four crosses", enjoyed a degree of self-government through
1800-561: A second strike, Inditex, Zara's parent company, has agreed to pay 322 euros more per month to shop assistants from 44 stores. Workers will also get a one-off bonus of 1,000 euros to be paid in February 2023. In December 2023, Yle reported in Finland that the local Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Regional State Administrative Agency had investigated the four Zara stores under suspicions of illegal labour practices. In
1900-423: A town court or portmote , and a form of free tenure of property . These privileges set the area of the town apart from its rural hinterland, where the more usual and more restrictive rules of manorial tenure applied. However, Croydon did not hold any kind of formal borough status. In 1690, the leading inhabitants petitioned William III and Mary for Croydon to be incorporated as a borough. The application
2000-400: A weekly market , and this probably marks the foundation of Croydon as an urban centre. Croydon developed into one of the main market towns of north east Surrey. The market place was laid out on the higher ground to the east of the manor house in the triangle now bounded by High Street, Surrey Street and Crown Hill. By the 16th century the manor house had become a substantial palace, used as
2100-480: A year. That goes up to 17 times for Zara. As a result of increasing competitive pressures from the online shopping market, Zara is shifting its focus onto online as well, and will consequently open fewer but larger stores in the future. In May 2022, a £1.95 return fee was implemented for some online orders in Britain and other core markets. This fee was introduced in Spain as of February 2023. In November 2022,
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#17327837115302200-496: Is Grade II listed; it was built in four phases. starting with the engine house in 1851, with a further engine house in 1862, a further extension in 1876–7 to house a compound horizontal engine and a further extension in 1912. In 1883 Croydon was incorporated as a borough. In 1889 it became a county borough, with a greater degree of autonomy. The new county borough council implemented the Croydon Improvement scheme in
2300-516: Is a Perpendicular -style church, which was remodelled in 1849 but destroyed in a great fire in 1867, after which only the tower, south porch, and outer walls remained. A new church was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott , one of the greatest architects of the Victorian age , and opened in 1870. His design loosely followed the previous layout, with knapped flint facing and many of the original features, including several tombs. Croydon Parish Church
2400-462: Is a fashion retail subsidiary of the Spanish multinational fashion design, manufacturing, and retailing group Inditex . Zara sells clothing, accessories, beauty products and perfumes. The head office is located at Arteixo in the province of A Coruña , Galicia . In 2020 alone, it launched over twenty new product lines. Zara was established by Amancio Ortega Gaona in 1975. Their first shop
2500-469: Is a red brick building with stone dressings. Its three bays are divided by paired Doric pilasters supporting a triglyph frieze and panelled parapet. The Parish Church of St Michael and All Angels by John Loughborough Pearson in West Croydon was built between 1880 and 1885, and is Grade I listed. The development of Brighton as a fashionable resort in the 1780s increased Croydon's importance as
2600-437: Is believed to be the first detergent that reduces the abrasion of textile microfibres during washing. It is claimed the solution, jointly developed by Inditex and BASF Home Care and I&I Solutions Europe in Spain and Germany, can reduce the release of microfibres by up to 80 per cent, depending on fabric type and washing conditions. Reportedly, Zara needs just one week to develop a new product and get it to stores, compared to
2700-591: Is expanding its secondhand clothing platform, Zara Pre-Owned, to the U.S. The service, which allows customers to sell, donate, or repair pre-owned items, is expected to launch in the U.S. by the end of October 2024. In 2010, Greenpeace started a dialog with Zara to ban toxics from the clothing production. Greenpeace published its "Toxic threads: the big fashion stitch-up" report in November 2012 as part of its Detox Campaign identifying companies that use toxic substances in their manufacturing processes. Nine days after
2800-525: Is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an extensive shopping district. The entire town had a population of 192,064 as of 2011, whilst the wider borough had a population of 384,837. Historically an ancient parish in the Wallington Hundred of Surrey, at the time of the Norman conquest of England Croydon had a church, a mill, and around 365 inhabitants, as recorded in
2900-552: Is the burial place of six Archbishops of Canterbury: John Whitgift , Edmund Grindal , Gilbert Sheldon , William Wake , John Potter and Thomas Herring . Historically part of the Diocese of Canterbury , Croydon is now in the Diocese of Southwark . In addition to the suffragan Bishop of Croydon , the Vicar of Croydon is a preferment . Addington Palace is a Palladian-style mansion between Addington Village and Shirley , in
3000-684: Is the former location of the Croydon C&;A Store. The new shopping centre is more than triple the size of the Drummond, however the original part of the Drummond Centre was not refurbished as part of the development, which is noticeable when walking through the centre. The centre was open seven days a week, Monday to Wednesday 10 a.m. - 6:30.p.m., Thursday 10 a.m. - 8 p.m., Friday 10 a.m. - 7 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. - 7 p.m., Sunday 11.a.m. - 5 p.m. Centrale shopping centre houses many of
3100-522: The 2013 Dhaka garment factory collapse , demanding a monthly US$ 100 minimum wage. Inditex does not publicly disclose the factories that produce their branded clothing. In 2016, BBC News stated they found evidence of child labor and exploitation in factories in Turkey. Zara replied that there were some issues in June 2016 in one single factory and, instead of solving these issues immediately, they have given
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3200-560: The Alemanni , who allegedly played a part in the proclamation of Constantine as emperor at York in AD 306. The town lies on the line of the Roman road from London to Portslade , and there is some archaeological evidence for small-scale Roman settlement in the area: there may have been a mansio (staging-post) here. Later, in the 5th to 7th centuries, a large pagan Saxon cemetery
3300-632: The County of Surrey , and between 1889 and 1965 a county borough , but it was amalgamated into Greater London in 1965. Croydon lies on a transport corridor between central London and the south coast of England, to the north of two high gaps in the North Downs , one taken by the A23 Brighton Road and the main railway line through Purley and Merstham and the other by the A22 from Purley to
3400-541: The Domesday Book of 1086. Croydon expanded in the Middle Ages as a market town and a centre for charcoal production, leather tanning and brewing. The brewing industry remaining strong for hundreds of years. The Surrey Iron Railway from Croydon to Wandsworth opened in 1803 and was an early public railway. Later 19th century railway building facilitated Croydon's growth as a commuter town for London. By
3500-543: The Grand Surrey Canal at Deptford . The London and Croydon Railway (an atmospheric and steam-powered railway) opened between London Bridge and West Croydon in 1839, using much of the route of the canal (which had closed in 1836). Other connections to London and the south followed. The arrival of the railways and other communications advances in the 19th century led to a 23-fold increase in Croydon's population between 1801 and 1901. This rapid expansion of
3600-541: The London market, most probably for medicinal purposes, and particularly for the treatment of granulation of the eyelids . There is also a plausible Brittonic origin for Croydon in the form "Crai-din" meaning "settlement near fresh water" (cf Creuddyn, Ceredigion ), the name Crai (variously spelled) being found in Kent at various places even as late as the Domesday Book . Alternative, although less probable, theories of
3700-685: The London Borough of Croydon . Six archbishops lived there between 1807 and 1898, when it was sold. Between 1953 and 1996 it was the home of the Royal School of Church Music . It is now a conference and banqueting venue. Croydon was home to the Addiscombe Military Seminary (1809–1861), at which young officers were trained for the army of the East India Company . Croydon was a leisure destination in
3800-525: The Mayor of London , Sadiq Khan , approved the regeneration scheme. Work to demolish the existing Whitgift Centre was due to begin in 2018 and Westfield Croydon was initially to open by 2022. The Westfield plans were delayed and the planning permission elapsed: however, in 2021, Croydon Council confirmed they were committed to see the Westfield Centre proceed. There are several other major plans for
3900-535: The product life cycle means greater success in meeting consumer preferences. If a design does not sell well within a week, it is withdrawn from shops, further orders are canceled and a new design is pursued. Zara monitors customers' fashion changes. Zara has a range of basic designs that are carried over from year to year, but some fashion-forward designs can stay on the shelves less than four weeks, which encourages Zara fans to make repeat visits. An average high-street store in Spain expects customers to visit three times
4000-407: The 'Croydon Loop'. Along with this Centrale is very close to mainline railway station, West Croydon , which provides frequent services to Sutton and the surrounding areas in the London Borough of Croydon as well as services to Central London. East Croydon station is around a 10-minute walk from the centre. The Drummond Centre was a shopping centre located on North End in Croydon. Four of
4100-522: The 1980s, Zara changed the design, manufacturing, and distribution process to reduce lead times and react more quickly to new trends – what Ortega called "instant fashions" – using information technology and groups of designers rather than individuals. The first shop outside Spain was opened in 1985 in Porto , Portugal. In 1989, the company entered the United States, and then France in 1990. During
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4200-841: The 1990s, Zara expanded to Mexico (1992), Greece, Belgium, Sweden (1993) and Israel (1997). In the 2000s, Zara opened its first stores in Brazil (2000); Japan and Singapore (2002); Ireland, Venezuela, Russia and Malaysia (2003); China, Morocco, Estonia, Hungary and Romania (2004); the Philippines, Costa Rica and Indonesia (2005); Colombia (2007); and South Korea (2008). In the 2010s Zara began to roll out locations in India (2010); Taiwan, South Africa and Australia (2011); and Peru (2012). In September 2010, Zara launched its online boutique. The website began in Jordan. In November of
4300-568: The Almshouses and unveiled a plaque celebrating the recently completed reconstruction of the building. On 22 March each year the laying of the foundation stone is commemorated as Founder's Day. In 1864, the Catholic St Mary's Church in Croydon was opened. It was designed by E. W. Pugin and Frederick Walters in the Gothic Revival style . The Grade II listed West Croydon Baptist Church was built in 1873 by J. Theodore Barker. It
4400-593: The Crystal Palace which had been rebuilt on Sydenham Hill in 1854, following its success at the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park . Horse racing in the area took place occasionally, notably during visits of Queen Elizabeth I to the archbishop. Regular meetings became established first on a course at Park Hill in 1860 and from 1866 at Woodside , where particularly good prizes were offered for
4500-519: The Danish came our crook and crooked . This term accurately describes the locality; it is a crooked or winding valley , in reference to the valley that runs in an oblique and serpentine course from Godstone to Croydon." Anderson challenged a claim, originally made by Andrew Coltee Ducarel , that the name came from the Old French for "chalk hill", because it was in use at least a century before
4600-612: The East Croydon station, after a compulsory purchase order was rejected in 2008 at Cabinet level. On 22 November 2011, then Mayor of London Boris Johnson announced £23m of additional funding to help redevelop the town at the Develop Croydon Conference. Several apartment developments, for instance Altitude 25 (completed 2010), have been built in recent years, and several more are being built or planned. The construction of Saffron Square , which includes
4700-585: The French language would have been commonly used following the Norman Conquest . However, there was no long-term Danish occupation (see Danelaw ) in Surrey, which was part of Wessex , and Danish-derived nomenclature is also highly unlikely. More recently, David Bird has speculated that the name might derive from a personal name, Crocus : he suggests a family connection with the documented Chrocus , king of
4800-472: The M25 Godstone interchange. Road traffic is diverted away from a largely pedestrianised town centre, mostly consisting of North End . East Croydon railway station is a hub of the national railway system, with frequent fast services to central London, Brighton and the south coast. The town is also at the centre of the only tramway system in southern England. As the vast majority of place names in
4900-598: The Star of David. Zara said the design was inspired by "the sheriff's stars from the classic western films". Zara removed the shirt from sale a few hours after they appeared for sale, and apologized. Zara received criticism for selling the T-shirt in Israel because the country does not have sheriffs. Additionally, the word "Sheriff" is outlined in transparent letters on the bright yellow star. The Anti-Defamation League responded to
5000-408: The accusations of slave labour made against the retailer represent a breach of the code of conduct for workshops of Inditex. The company also states factories responsible for unauthorized outsourcing have been asked to regularize immediately the situation of the workers involved. In September 2013, Bangladeshi garment workers for suppliers to Zara and its parent company, Inditex, protested following
5100-559: The area are of Anglo-Saxon origin, the theory accepted by most philologists is that the name Croydon derives originally from the Old English croh , meaning " crocus ", and denu , " valley ", indicating that, like Saffron Walden in Essex, it was a centre for the cultivation of saffron . It has been argued that this cultivation is likely to have taken place in the Roman period, when the saffron crocus would have been grown to supply
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#17327837115305200-405: The church is also mentioned in Domesday Book . The will of John de Croydon, fishmonger, dated 6 December 1347, includes a bequest to "the church of S John de Croydon", the earliest clear record of its dedication . The church still bears the arms of Archbishop Courtenay and Archbishop Chichele , believed to have been its benefactors. In 1276 Archbishop Robert Kilwardby acquired a charter for
5300-489: The company's women's head fashion designer Vanessa Perilman made anti-Palestinian comments in response to Palestinian model Qaher Harhash . After receiving backlash for her comments when they were made public by Qaher, Perilman apologized and Zara later asked Qaher to post Perilman's apology on his social media. Because of Zara's delayed response, and decision to not fire Perilman, calls to boycott Zara emerged through social media. In December 2023, Zara faced backlash over
5400-527: The corner of North End and George Street, were erected by Archbishop John Whitgift. He petitioned for and received permission from Queen Elizabeth I to establish a hospital and school in Croydon for the "poor, needy and impotent people" from the parishes of Croydon and Lambeth . The foundation stone was laid in 1596 and the building was completed in 1599. The premises included the Hospital or Almshouses, providing accommodation for between 28 and 40 people, and
5500-495: The country. There was a market on Surrey Street . Croydon was the location of London's main airport until the Second World War. During the war, much of central Croydon was devastated by German V-1 flying bombs and V-2 rockets , and for many years the town bore the scars of the destruction. After the war, Heathrow Airport superseded Croydon Airport as London's main airport, and Croydon Airport quickly went into
5600-429: The designer by removing socks that resembled his artistic style. In June 2018, a Zara jacket with "I really don't care, do u?" emblazoned on the back became controversial after it was worn by Melania Trump when she visited a detention center for migrant children separated from their parents. In January 2018, Shanghai's internet authority summoned representatives of Zara, chastising the company for listing Taiwan as
5700-411: The development, Centrale committed to and paid for improvements to North End and the provision of a new Tramlink stop, Centrale , located adjacent to the centre on Tamworth Road. The stop operates as a fully functioning transport interchange with trams stopping on one side of the platform and local buses on the other. It operates, along with West Croydon and East Croydon , as a Tramlink interchange on
5800-479: The early 1890s, which widened the High Street and cleared much of the "Middle Row" slum area. The remaining slums were cleared shortly after Second World War , with much of the population relocated to the isolated new settlement of New Addington . New stores opened and expanded in central Croydon, including Allders , Kennards and Grade II listed Grants , as well as the first Sainsbury's self-service shop in
5900-419: The early 20th century, Croydon was an important industrial area, known for car manufacture, metal working and Croydon Airport . In the mid 20th century these sectors were replaced by retailing and the service economy , brought about by massive redevelopment which saw the rise of office blocks and the Whitgift Centre , the largest shopping centre in Greater London until 2008. Historically, the town formed part of
6000-745: The economic struggles in the country. As of January 2023, the clothing retailer has nearly 3000 stores, including its kids and home stores. Spanning over 96 countries and continuing to grow. In April 2023, Zara left Russia by selling the business to Fashion and More Management DVCC. The brand changed its name to Maag. The key trends for Zara (including Zara Home) are as at the financial year ending 31 January: Zara stores have men's and women's clothing as well as children's clothing (Zara Kids). Zara Home designs are located in European stores. The majority of Zara customers are aged between 18 and about 35. After products are designed, they take 10 to 15 days to reach
6100-452: The empty 24-storey St George's House office building, occupied by Nestlé until September 2012, into 288 flats. In 2007, events were held under the label of Croydon Exp07 to promote billions of pounds of promised projects, including swimming pools and a library. However, plans for a new shopping centre, to be called Park Place , had already been abandoned amid a scandal about cash for peerages . Also abandoned were plans for an arena near
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#17327837115306200-412: The existing but much smaller Drummond Centre. It now contains a large store – House of Fraser and formerly a Debenhams store – and around 50 smaller stores including Next , H&M and Zara . The 820,000 sq ft (76,200 m) development also housed Croydon's first and only dedicated indoor food court on the upper level. The Food Gallery was given planning permission after the main centre
6300-556: The investigation it was found that the workload the employees were subjected to were illegal. In one store, 95% of respondents to the authorities' enquiry felt that the workload is unbearable. In July 2016, complaints were made against Zara that they had been stealing designs from multiple independent designers for their products. One of the designers, Tuesday Bassen, who previously worked with brands including Urban Outfitters and Nike , contacted Zara. The company responded Bassen's designs were not distinctive enough, and they received only
6400-510: The life of the town well into the early modern period , and as local patrons they continue to have an influence. Croydon appears in Domesday Book (1086) as Croindene , held by Archbishop Lanfranc . Its Domesday assets included 16 hides and 1 virgate of land; a church; a mill worth 5s; 38 plough -teams; 8 acres (3.2 ha) of meadow ; and woodland for 200 hogs . It had a recorded population of 73 households (representing roughly 365 individuals); and its value in terms of taxes rendered
6500-533: The linchpin of a cultural quarter encompassing nearby College Green. Plans include an art gallery, a new college , shops and offices, with a multi-storey car park set for demolition to make space for 218 homes. As of 2011, Croydon's annual retail turnover from comparison goods was £353 million, the fifth-highest in Greater London behind the West End , Shepherd's Bush , Stratford and Kingston upon Thames . Croydon had as of 2012 320,991 square metres (3,455,120 sq ft) of total town centre floorspace,
6600-469: The main high street stores, including Boots , Carphone Warehouse , French Connection , House of Fraser , La Senza , Miss Selfridge , NEXT , Sports Direct and Typo . In May 2020, Debenhams announced plans to enter administration as a result of the Coronavirus lockdown and that some stores, including Centrale, would not reopen. The store will be replaced with a further Next outlet. In 2013 it
6700-453: The main summer home of the archbishops and visited by monarchs and other dignitaries. However, the palace gradually became dilapidated and surrounded by slums and stagnant ponds, and in 1781 the archbishops sold it, and in its place purchased a new residence at nearby Addington . Nevertheless, many of the buildings of the original Croydon Palace survive, and are in use today as Old Palace School . The Parish Church (now Croydon Minster )
6800-510: The mid 19th century. In 1831, one of England's most prominent architects, Decimus Burton , designed a spa and pleasure gardens below Beulah Hill and off what is now Spa Hill in a bowl of land on the south-facing side of the hill around a spring of chalybeate water. Burton was responsible for the Beulah Spa Hotel (demolished around 1935) and the layout of the grounds. Its official title was The Royal Beulah Spa and Gardens. It became
6900-530: The name's origin have been proposed. According to John Corbet Anderson: "The earliest mention of Croydon is in the joint will of Beorhtric and Aelfswth, dated about the year 962. In this Anglo-Saxon document the name is spelt [here he uses Old English characters] Crogdaene . Crog was, and still is, the Norse or Danish word for crooked, which is expressed in Anglo-Saxon by crumb , a totally different word. From
7000-477: The period up to its closing after going bankrupt. The company said they would help to provide compensation to employees who weren't paid. In the agreement, only factory-floor employees were compensated, with "white-collar" employees not covered by the agreement. In 2022, about 1,000 shop assistants who work at Zara and other fashion brands owned by Inditex went on strike on Black Friday in the company's home town in northern Spain to demand better salaries. Prior to
7100-515: The promotional photos to the images of the aftermath of air strikes in Palestine and called for a boycott of the brand. The campaign was subsequently removed from their app and website, and some images removed from their Instagram account. On December 12, Zara announced that it "regrets" a "misunderstanding" about the ad campaign and that it was photographed in September. In April 2022 it
7200-538: The races run under National Hunt rules. In that sphere its prestige was second only to Aintree , home of the Grand National . Increasing local opposition to the presence of allegedly unruly racegoers coupled with the need to obtain a licence from the local authority led to it being closed down in 1890. The Elizabethan Whitgift Almshouses , the "Hospital of the Holy Trinity", in the centre of Croydon at
7300-410: The release of their "ZARA ATELIER. Collection 04_The Jacket." campaign. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received 50 complaints about the advert, which included photos of a model posing with a mannequin wrapped in plastic, and others where the model was surrounded by rubble and rocks with a cardboard cut out of what appeared similar to the map of Palestine. Commenters likened the similarity of
7400-520: The report was published, Zara committed to eradicating all releases of hazardous chemicals throughout its entire supply chain and products by 2020. Zara became the biggest retailer in the world to raise awareness for the Detox Campaign, and switched to a fully toxic-free production. In 2007, Zara withdrew a handbag from its shelves after a customer noticed a swastika on the bag's design. The bag came from an external supplier, and Zara claimed
7500-518: The same year, Zara Online extended its service to five more countries: Austria, Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg. Online stores began operating in the United States in 2011, Russia and Canada in 2013, Mexico in 2014, South Korea in 2014, Romania in 2016, India in 2017, Israel and Brazil in 2019, and Peru in 2020. In 2015, Zara was ranked #30 on Interbrand's list of best global brands. In 2019, Zara updated their logo. It
7600-542: The second highest in Greater London only behind the West End. Apart from its large central shopping district, Croydon has a number of smaller shopping areas, especially towards the southern end of the town in which are many restaurants. As of 2011, two of Croydon's restaurants were listed in The Good Food Guide . In a 2015 study by CACI , Croydon was ranked 12th in the "Hot 100 UK retail locations" with
7700-428: The seventeen units were still vacant when the mall closed. Revenue was also low at the centre, and it could never compete with the larger Whitgift Centre across the road. Neighbouring the centre was a large C&A store, which closed in 2004, this was combined with the Drummond Centre, rebuilt to become St. Martins Property Group's new shopping centre Centrale. The current North End entrance between Aldo and Zara
7800-439: The shirt, saying that it was offensive, but welcomed Zara's recognition of the potential imagery and removing the shirt from sale. In August 2011, a Brazilian television show accused the company of using sweatshops for their outsourced production. The Regional Superintendency of Labour and Employment of São Paulo, Brazil, closed a factory that produced Zara's clothing for its poor labour conditions. Zara's representatives said
7900-549: The six-month industry average, and makes roughly 40,000 designs of which around 12,000 new designs are selected and produced each year. Zara has a policy of zero advertising; the company preferred to invest a percentage of revenues in opening new stores instead. Zara set up its own factory in La Coruña (a city known for its textile industry) in 1980 and upgraded to reverse milk-run -type production and distribution facilities in 1990. This approach, designed by Toyota Motor Corp.,
8000-443: The stores. All of the clothing is processed through the distribution center in Spain. New items are inspected, sorted, tagged, and loaded into trucks. In most cases, the clothing is delivered within 48 hours. Zara produces over 450 million items per year. Zara also includes accessories, shoes, swimwear, beauty and perfumes. In May 2021, Zara launched its first beauty line, ZARA Beauty. Under its Zara Home line, Zara launched what
8100-404: The symbol was not visible when the handbag was chosen. Zara withdrew the product from stores, and spokesperson Susan Suett said the bag would not have been sourced had the symbol been apparent. In August 2014, Zara received criticism for selling a toddler T-shirt for closely resembling uniforms worn by Jewish concentration camp inmates. The T-shirt was striped and featured a yellow star similar to
8200-623: The terms of the London Government Act 1963 ) the County Borough of Croydon was abolished and the area was transferred to Greater London and combined with the Coulsdon and Purley Urban District to form the London Borough of Croydon . The borough has on several occasions sought city status . (This would be a purely honorific change of title, making no practical difference to the borough's governance.) A draft petition
8300-622: The town a more attractive image. These included the closure of North End to vehicles in 1989 and the opening of the Croydon Clocktower arts centre in 1994. An early success of the centre was the " Picasso 's Croydon Period" exhibition of March–May 1995. The Croydon Tramlink began operation in May 2000 (see Transport section below). The Prospect West office development was built in 1991 to 1992, and its remodelling planned in 2012 has now been completed. Renamed Interchange Croydon when it
8400-412: The town boomed as a business centre in the 1960s, with many multi-storey office blocks, an underpass , a flyover and multi-storey car parks . The redeveloped town centre has since been identified as an " edge city " – a significant urban and commercial centre in its own right, located on the outskirts of a larger metropolitan area (in this case, London). In 1960 Croydon celebrated its millennium with
8500-475: The town including the redevelopment of the Croydon Gateway site; and extensions of Tramlink to Purley Way, Streatham , Lewisham and Crystal Palace . Croydon has many tall buildings such as the former Nestlé Tower (St George's House). The London Borough of Croydon's strategic planning committee in February 2013 gave the go-ahead to property fund manager Legal and General Property's plans to convert
8600-434: The town led to considerable health problems, especially in the damp and overcrowded working class district of Old Town. In response to this, in 1849 Croydon became one of the first towns in the country to acquire a local board of health . The Board constructed public health infrastructure including a reservoir , water supply network , sewers , a pumping station and sewage disposal works. The Surrey Street Pumping Station
8700-409: The town which was in the process of gentrification. A Croydon Vision 2020 plan was drawn up by Croydon Council after a 1999 study by town planning consultants EDAW . The plan includes new office blocks, apartment buildings, shopping centres and other developments, some of which have already been built. More than 2,000 new homes are planned. A redeveloped Fairfield Halls has been planned to be
8800-575: Was "the largest town which does not have the title of City in the whole of Western Europe". The grounds on which it has been turned down have invariably been that it is (as was stated in 1992) merely "part of the London conurbation, rather than a place with a character and identity of its own". Undeterred, council representatives have more than once described Croydon as "a city in all but name". In 2008, Boris Johnson , then Mayor of London, said he would support Croydon being awarded city status. Zara (retailer) Zara ( Spanish: [ˈθaɾa] )
8900-477: Was announced that the owners of Centrale had agreed to a joint venture with the owners of the neighbouring Whitgift Centre to redevelop both sites into the new Westfield Croydon Shopping Centre. Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London , England, 9.3 miles (15.0 km) south of Charing Cross . Part of the London Borough of Croydon , a local government district of Greater London , it
9000-511: Was built and opened in November 2005 with seating for 200 diners. As of 2013, the Food Court has no tenants, the units being boarded up, however until 2020 there was still pedestrian access to the first floor of Debenhams until that store closed. Other food outlets in the centre include McDonald's (one of eleven in the London Borough of Croydon ), Auntie Anne's and House of Fraser's World of Food which has international cuisine available from
9100-526: Was called the just-in-time (JIT) system. It enabled the company to establish a business model that allows self-containment throughout the stages of materials, manufacture, product completion, and distribution to stores worldwide within just a few days. Most of the products Zara sells are manufactured in Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Morocco, Bangladesh and more recently - Armenia . While some competitors outsource all production to Asia, Zara manufactures its most fashionable items – half of all its merchandise – at
9200-431: Was designed by the French agency Baron & Baron. The global fashion business Journal MDS stated that while the textile commerce of the world had gone down by 2.38%, Zara's had risen 2.17%. Chief Executive Persson said the brand is waiting for more acceptable global rent levels to continue its expansion. In Europe, the brand planned to cut the number of retail locations beginning in 2020. In 2021, Zara left Venezuela by
9300-414: Was effectively ignored. Croydon's growth in the 19th century brought the issue of incorporation back on to the political agenda, and in 1883 the ancient parish of Croydon, apart from its exclave of Croydon Crook or Selsdon , was created a municipal borough within Surrey. In 1889, because the population was high enough, it was made a county borough , exempt from county administration. In 1965 (under
9400-562: Was in central A Coruña , in Galicia , Spain, where the company is still based. They initially called it 'Zorba' after the classic 1964 film Zorba the Greek , but after learning there was a bar with the same name two blocks away, rearranged the letters to read 'Zara'. It is believed the extra 'a' came from an additional set of letters that had been made for the company. It sold low-priced lookalike products of popular, higher-end clothing fashions. He subsequently opened more shops in Spain. During
9500-399: Was initially approved, the king authorising the drafting of a charter , but the process was then abruptly halted, apparently through the intervention of Archbishop John Tillotson , who probably feared a threat to his own authority over the town. The application was revived the following year, when Queen Mary again authorised a charter, but once again it was abandoned. A second petition in 1707
9600-677: Was opened in 2004, along with a larger H&M , Mango , Uniqlo , and Timberland . The building has been designed to maximise the view of west Croydon from the eastern windows including the IKEA Towers landmarks on Purley Way . The building also has solar panels on the roof according to a report which was highlighting Croydon's Ashburton Learning Village on 24dash.com. Centrale does not have numbered levels (as do many UK shopping centres), but instead names them as Keeley Road & Tamworth Road (lower basement), Lower Mall (basement), Ground Floor Mall and Upper Mall (first floor). As part of
9700-478: Was reopened in 2014, the 180,000 square foot office development was the first new grade A office development of its size to open in Croydon for more than 20 years. Another large shopping centre, Centrale , opened in 2004 opposite the Whitgift Centre, and adjoining the smaller Drummond Centre . House of Fraser and Debenhams are the anchor stores in the combined centre. In addition, there are plans for
9800-474: Was situated on what is now Park Lane, although the extent of any associated settlement is unknown. By the late Saxon period Croydon was the hub of an estate belonging to the Archbishops of Canterbury . The church and the archbishops' manor house occupied the area still known as " Old Town ". The archbishops used the manor house as an occasional place of residence: as lords of the manor they dominated
9900-568: Was submitted by the County Borough to the Home Office in 1951, a more formal petition in 1954, and two more applications in 1955 and 1958. When the London Borough was created in 1965, the Council endeavoured to have it styled a City, as was the City of Westminster . Further bids for city status were made in 1977, 1992, 2000, 2002, and 2012. All have failed. The borough's predominant argument has always been its size: in 2000 it pointed out that it
10000-404: Was £37 10s 0d. The church had been established in the middle Saxon period, and was probably a minster church , a base for a group of clergy living a communal life. A charter issued by King Coenwulf of Mercia refers to a council that had taken place close to the monasterium (meaning minster) of Croydon. An Anglo-Saxon will made in about 960 is witnessed by Elfsies, priest of Croydon; and
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