CARACAS (Reuters) - Spanish fast fashion retailer Inditex on Thursday relaunched its business in Venezuela with the opening of a Zara store via a franchise agreement.

In 2021, Inditex, which also owns Bershka, Pull & Bear and other brands, closed all the group's shops in the South American country, following a revised franchise agreement with then local partner Phoenix World Trade.

The company confirmed in January that it planned to restart activities in Venezuela in the first half of 2024 with local partner Grupo Futura.

"I was waiting for Zara to open, I frequently shopped there when it was in the city," said Deisy Hartaona, 56, who thronged with hundreds of other customers in Venezuela's capital as she searched the store for shoes.