Scaling Curated Retail
Across Markets:
Literature Review
This literature review formed the foundation of my thesis on the scalability of curated retail models and assessed how structural changes in fashion retail, shifting consumer expectations and cross-cultural differences shape the performance of curated multi-brand environments. The review brought together academic research and industry reporting to build a comprehensive understanding of the pressures affecting physical retail and the emerging relevance of curated formats.
Current studies highlight a significant shift away from traditional wholesale structures. Market instability, delayed payments and long markdown cycles have weakened wholesale’s reliability, prompting brands to invest more heavily in direct-to-consumer channels. While these models offer stronger margins and access to customer data, research points to mounting operational challenges such as rising marketing costs, high return rates and saturation across digital markets. These developments strengthen the role of physical retail as a space where brands can build connection, especially when the environment offers meaningful interaction and differentiated value.
Across consumer behaviour research, discovery and emotional engagement emerge as central drivers in the renewed interest in physical stores. The enduring relevance of the Experience Economy theory is supported by contemporary studies showing that value is increasingly created through spatial, sensory and human dimensions rather than through products alone. This aligns with the rise of curated retailers, whose tightly edited assortments and distinctive atmospheres respond to consumers’ desire for clarity, intimacy and memorable experiences. The momentum of independent specialty retailers in Western markets reflects this shift, particularly as department stores struggle to deliver focused curation.
Curated retail formats such as Dover Street Market illustrate this cultural shift. Their approach to storytelling, spatial design and continuous renewal demonstrates how curation can function as both a creative and commercial strategy. While Western curated retailers often succeed on a boutique scale, retailers in Japan have extended similar models across extensive store networks. Companies such as BEAMS and United Arrows have embedded curation into every layer of their business, adapting each location to local culture while maintaining a recognisable identity. This contrast prompted further investigation into the operational structures that underpin these models.
Across academic literature, the operational dimension of curated retail remains under-examined. Research on curation primarily focuses on its cultural meaning, the role of the curator and the experiential function of retail environments. Studies on fashion supply chain management are positioned at the opposite end of the spectrum, emphasising speed, efficiency and cost control. Little research connects the two, leaving limited insight into how curated models can be organised, scaled or sustained. Industry articles describe practices such as agile buying, localised decision-making and store reinvention, yet stop short of explaining how these activities integrate into structured retail operations. This gap establishes the need for further study into how curated environments can scale effectively without losing their identity.
Conducting this review strengthened my ability to synthesise academic theory with market analysis and to identify the operational blind spots that shape retail strategy. It provided a clear foundation for the next stage of my thesis, which investigates the organisational conditions that allow curated retail models to scale across different markets.
(Full Literature Review.)