Victoria’s Secret announces its first store in Croatia

Victoria’s Secret is expected to open its first physical store in Croatia in November 2026, at Arena Centar in Zagreb. According to a report published by Večernji list on 24 September, the store is planned for the shopping centre’s first floor. Another significant development for Croatia’s franchise sector is the arrival of Alshaya Group, the international franchise operator for which Croatia will become its 21st market.

Opening expected in November

Večernji list reports the expected November opening alongside photographs from Arena Centar submitted by a reader. This timing is consistent with Alshaya Group’s earlier announcement that the store would open in the final quarter of 2026. The announced location is on the first floor of the Zagreb shopping centre.

It is important to distinguish between the expected opening month and a confirmed opening date. The available report does not specify an exact day, so November should currently be treated as the announced target. The store is not yet open; preparations for its arrival are under way.

The American lingerie and beauty brand is already available to Croatian customers through its online shop. The news therefore concerns its planned entry into physical retail, rather than the first opportunity to buy its products. According to the announcement, the Zagreb branch will be Croatia’s first physical Victoria’s Secret store.

Alshaya enters its 21st market

The opening has broader business significance beyond the arrival of a single brand at a shopping centre. According to Večernji list, Croatia will become the 21st market in which Alshaya Group operates, and Victoria’s Secret will be the group’s first brand with a physical store in the country. The planned store therefore also marks an international franchise operator’s entry into the Croatian market.

Alshaya already operates Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works stores in Czechia, Poland and Romania. The Croatian announcement thus fits into the group’s expansion in Central and Eastern Europe. This regional presence provides context for the Zagreb opening, but does not in itself confirm further locations or the arrival of other group brands in Croatia.

For those following Croatia’s franchise sector, it is particularly important to distinguish between two developments: the arrival of Victoria’s Secret and the presence of an operator managing international brands. In this case, the announcement concerns one brand and one Zagreb location. The available material contains no announcement of a Croatian Bath & Body Works store, so its regional operations should not be interpreted as signalling a local opening.

What the arrival means for Croatia’s franchise sector

The announcement comes in a market where international and domestic franchise networks already have a substantial presence. According to figures published by Index on 21 September 2023, Croatia then had 248 franchise networks operating across 4,500 locations and directly employing around 20,000 people. Almost 30 per cent of the franchises were Croatian.

These figures provide historical context, but do not reflect the situation in 2026. They should not be presented as current totals, nor should a single announcement be used to calculate a new size for Croatia’s franchise sector. That would require more recent, comparable data on the number of networks, locations and employees.

What this news clearly establishes is a specific plan for an international brand to enter the market through a major franchise operator. For entrepreneurs exploring franchise models, it is useful to know who is behind the local opening. However, the presence of such an operator is not the same as a public invitation for local entrepreneurs to become franchisees. No such invitation appears in the published report.

What information is still to come

The available announcement identifies the brand, shopping centre, floor and expected opening period. It does not provide details of the investment value, store size, number of jobs or the Zagreb branch’s precise product range. It is therefore not possible to assess reliably the scale of the local investment or its impact on employment.

Likewise, there is no information confirming further Victoria’s Secret openings in other Croatian cities. For now, the first Zagreb store is the only clearly announced location, while any potential expansion remains a matter for future official statements. Until then, the most accurate description is a planned opening at Arena Centar in the final quarter of 2026, expected to take place in November.

Practical takeaway: shoppers should await confirmation of the exact opening date, while entrepreneurs should distinguish between the arrival of an international operator and an offer of franchise opportunities. The current news confirms plans for the first store, not the availability of a franchise to local partners.