KIABI Lands in Gozo: French Fashion Giant Opens First Store, Promising Local Jobs and Island-Sized Charm

KIABI continues to expand as it opens its first store in Gozo
By Hot Malta Staff | 09 June 2025, 07:00

The ferry horns had barely finished their dawn duet in Mġarr on Saturday when the first shoppers began queuing outside the old BHS storefront in Victoria’s It-Tokk. By 09:00, the ribbon—cut not with the usual oversized scissors but with a pair of children’s pinking shears borrowed from the nearby craft stall—was on the floor and Gozo had its first KIABI. The French “fashion-for-all” chain, already a hit in Malta’s three existing outlets, has now crossed the channel, bringing 1,200 m² of budget-friendly wardrobes to the island that still measures distances in parishes, not kilometres.

Locals greeted the opening with the kind of cautious enthusiasm Gozitans reserve for anything that promises jobs without threatening tranquillity. “We’ve seen franchises come and go,” said 68-year-old Peppa Attard, who has sold ħobż biż-żejt outside the arcade since 1983. “But if they hire our grandchildren and don’t turn the square into Paceville, we clap.” KIABI says it has already recruited 42 staff—90 % Gozitan, including a dozen who until last week were commuting to the Malta branches. Starting salaries are pegged €250 above the minimum wage, and the company is negotiating with the Ministry for Gozo to subsidise IT apprenticeships for retail-tech skills.

The choice of location is itself a small cultural nod. The unit has lain empty since British chain BHS closed in 2017, a vacancy that became a running joke during festa season: “More hollow than the BHS windows,” locals quipped when politicians made promises. Refurbishment took nine months—stone cleaned with the same soft-bristle brushes used on the Cathedral’s baptismal font, timber beams salvaged from a deconsecrated Rabat windmill, and a children’s corner decorated with bunting sewn by the Xewkija lace collective. Even the mannequins were repositioned so their gaze tilts toward the Citadel, a quiet bow to Gozo’s habit of looking uphill for reassurance.

Economists see the move as a bellwether. “When a continental value retailer bets on Gozo, it signals confidence in resident spending, not just tourist footfall,” said Dr. Claudia Caruana, who tracks retail patterns at MUŻA Enterprise. Cruise-ship visitors splash out on artisanal lace, but year-rounders want school uniforms that won’t bankrupt them before the first term. KIABI’s €3 T-shirts and €12 jeans plug a gap left by the demise of mainland discount stores that used to fill the boat on Friday nights. Government data show Gozitan household disposable income rose 11 % between 2020 and 2024, yet clothing’s share of the household basket shrank 6 %, suggesting locals were either sewing longer or travelling farther. The new store saves them the €12.95 ferry ticket.

Environmentalists are watching deliveries. KIABI has pledged to consolidate shipments into one nightly truck crossing, timed to the 02:00 freight slot when the channel is already busiest, thus avoiding extra sailings. Reusable garment boxes are stacked at the back of the store like Lego bricks, ready for the return leg. “It’s not perfect,” said Arnold Sciberras of FoE Malta, “but it’s a damn sight better than the 2010 Primark rumour that would have meant six extra trips a day.”

Perhaps the sweetest moment came when theDoneo twins—Lea and Liam, age 9—modelled the opening-day collection culled from recycling bins in Xlendi. Their runway was a strip of red carpet rolled from the door to the statue of Queen Victoria, while the Rabat banda struck up a waltz. Parents filmed on phones; grandparents wiped eyes. In that instant, global fast fashion felt briefly, wonderfully Gozitan.

Conclusion
KIABI’s arrival will not shift tectonic plates, but it does nudge the islands’ smaller plate a little closer to Europe’s retail mainstream without scraping the delicate glaze of Gozitan life. If the jobs last longer than the seasonal sales and if Saturday’s smiles still reach eyes when the novelty fades, the investment will have sewn something more durable than polyester—namely, confidence that Gozo can host big brands on its own stubborn terms. As the sun set behind the Citadel and the last paper carrier bag fluttered across It-Tokk like a pale parakeet, the message was clear: the channel is no longer a moat, but neither is it a motorway. And that, for an island that has spent millennia negotiating distance, might be the perfect fit.