Brand Introduction: "Clothes are the supporting role, and the person wearing them is the main character" highlights its people-oriented clothing philosophy. Even seemingly simple basic styles can showcase individuality with careful coordination.
The full name of UNIQLO is UNIQUE CLOTHING WAREHOUSE, which implies providing customers with desired goods at reasonable and credible prices through warehouse-style shops that discard unnecessary decorations and adopt a supermarket-style self-service shopping method.
The company name is FAST RETAILING, which contains many special meanings. FAST[swift] + RETAILING[retail] reflects the fundamental spirit of how to quickly commercialize customer requirements and how to swiftly provide products, as well as their unshakable belief to become a retail enterprise with the world-universal concept of fast food culture.
This concept refers to providing clothing that anyone can wear anytime and anywhere through unified services worldwide at reasonable and credible prices, in large quantities and continuously. Therefore, they have a unique product planning, development, and sales system, thereby realizing low-cost shop operations.
Brand History:
The Fast Retailing Company, which owns the UNIQLO brand, was established in 1953 and initially started as a small clothing store selling suits. The current chairman and general manager, Tadashi Yanai, graduated from Waseda University's Economics Department early in his career. He entered the Fast Retailing Company in August 1972 and became the company's chairman and general manager in September 1984. In 1982, while Yanai was a director of the company, he was inspired by the warehouse-style sales methods he observed on university campuses in the United States. Upon returning home, he proposed trying out this warehouse-type self-service shopping method for clothing stores and introduced the large-scale shopping mall style of clothing sales in Japan for the first time, achieving low-cost shop operations through a unique product planning, development, and sales system.
In June 1984, the first UNIQLO warehouse-style clothing specialty store officially opened in Hiroshima, Japan. At the time, Japan's economy was in a slump, and UNIQLO's business strategy was to provide fashionable casual clothing to all consumers at low prices. To gather popularity and attract customers, when it first opened, UNIQLO also provided a free breakfast of bread and milk to shoppers, which indeed attracted a large number of customers. Every morning, there were always quite a few people gathered in front of UNIQLO's store, queuing up to collect breakfast and then entering the store to shop.
In 1991, Fast Retailing began its chain business and proposed a development plan to establish 1000 branches, aiming to achieve UNIQLO's chain operation. American Limited and GAP, stores with local characteristics, became UNIQLO's expansion templates. In 1994, UNIQLO was listed on the Hiroshima Stock Exchange and subsequently listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. In 1998, the UNIQLO Harajuku store opened successfully, starting the era of "casual wear directly facing consumers." This means comprehensively revising the business processes of planning, production, circulation, and sales, striving to establish the most suitable business model for consumers, where the key is mass production according to consumer needs.
With its unique business philosophy and model, UNIQLO has developed steadily. Now, Fast Retailing has become the top-ranked company in Japan's retail industry and one of the leading enterprises in the global apparel retail industry, with nearly 600 stores in Japan alone; it has achieved the miracle of doubling its annual revenue for three consecutive years: 111 billion yen in 1999, 228.9 billion yen in 2000, and 418.5 billion yen in 2001, thus ranking first in Japan's "Top Prosperous Enterprises of the 21st Century," becoming the highest market share casual wear brand in Japan. In September 2001, Fast Retailing opened its first overseas store in London, UK. Currently, UNIQLO has 15 specialty stores in the UK and was rated as the "Most Influential Excellent Enterprise in the UK Market in 2002" by the representative industry magazine "RetailWeek" within a year of entering Europe.
Brand Development:
In 1991, Fast Retailing began its chain business and proposed a development plan to establish 1000 branches, aiming to achieve UNIQLO's chain operation. American Limited and GAP, stores with local characteristics, became UNIQLO's expansion templates. In 1994, UNIQLO was listed on the Hiroshima Stock Exchange and subsequently listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. In 1998, the UNIQLO Harajuku store opened successfully, starting the era of "casual wear directly facing consumers." This means comprehensively revising the business processes of planning, production, circulation, and sales, striving to establish the most suitable business model for consumers, where the key is mass production according to consumer needs.
With its unique business philosophy and model, UNIQLO has developed steadily. Now, Fast Retailing has become the top-ranked company in Japan's retail industry and one of the leading enterprises in the global apparel retail industry, with nearly 600 stores in Japan alone; it has achieved the miracle of doubling its annual revenue for three consecutive years: 111 billion yen in 1999, 228.9 billion yen in 2000, and 418.5 billion yen in 2001, thus ranking first in Japan's "Top Prosperous Enterprises of the 21st Century," becoming the highest market share casual wear brand in Japan. In September 2001, Fast Retailing opened its first overseas store in London, UK. Currently, UNIQLO has 15 specialty stores in the UK and was rated as the "Most Influential Excellent Enterprise in the UK Market in 2002" by the representative industry magazine "RetailWeek" within a year of entering Europe.
Brand in China:
Uniqlo is about to launch online shopping services in our branded clothing retail industry, and its online flagship store will go live in mid-April. Moreover, Uniqlo plans to open three more stores in Shanghai next month, bringing the total number of stores in Shanghai to eleven. Uniqlo aims to double its total number of stores in China this year.
According to reports, Uniqlo has already set up points of presence in important cities in mainland China such as Beijing, Chengdu, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Dalian, etc. Among them, there are already five stores in Beijing, and it is said that the number of stores in Beijing will reach ten by the end of this year. After opening its first store in Chengdu last month, Chengdu will soon open its second and third stores. The Dalian store, which opened on September 12th this year, marks Uniqlo's official entry into Northeast China.
It is reported that Uniqlo has processing points in multiple regions including China, Southeast Asia, and Europe. There are hundreds of various processing enterprises in China alone. Ninety percent of Uniqlo's products are made in China.
Brand Fabric:
A global promotion event for Japan's famous brand UNIQLO (Uniqlo) "HEATTECH" was held in Beijing. "HEATTECH" is a high-tech garment born from the fusion of Japanese advanced technology and fashion trends, and is also a very important strategic product in Uniqlo's global branding process. According to reports, the global promotion event for "HEATTECH" was held sequentially in New York, London, Beijing, Paris, and Seoul from November 18th to 29th. "HEATTECH" has an ultra-strong moisture-absorbing heat-generating function, and is an innovative fabric developed by Uniqlo with the goal of "warmer protection, more comfortable experience, and more appropriate price." Since its launch in Japan five years ago, it has sparked a fashion trend, achieving a sales record of approximately 20 million pieces in the Japanese market in 2007.
Uniqlo combines innovative technology with moderate pricing, making "HEATTECH" clothing not only suitable for daily wear but also allowing consumers to enjoy the fun of winter thin-layered outfits even when sudden cold waves hit.
Brand Production:
Uniqlo's ready-to-wear production bases are not only located in China but are gradually expanding to other Asian countries. While completing the diversification and multi-nationalization of production bases, a management system that ensures product quality is implemented.
Uniqlo dispatches "technical craftsmen" to approximately 70 cooperative factories, providing active technical support. These "technical craftsmen" consist of skilled technicians with over 30 years of experience in the textile industry in Japan. Through them, skills ranging from fibers, weaving, textiles, dyeing, sewing, finished products to supply are taught to the factories.
Additionally, the active performance of overseas production management departments cannot be overlooked. A total of 170 Uniqlo production management personnel are stationed in the Shanghai office, Shenzhen office, and Ho Chi Minh City office in Vietnam, regularly visiting factories in various locations each week to conduct quality inspections and other tasks.
Company Development: In 1991, Fast Retailing began its chain business and proposed a development plan to establish 1000 branches, aiming to achieve UNIQLO's chain operation. American Limited and GAP, stores with local characteristics, became UNIQLO's expansion templates. In 1994, UNIQLO was listed on the Hiroshima Stock Exchange and subsequently listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. In 1998, the UNIQLO Harajuku store opened successfully, starting the era of "casual wear directly facing consumers." This means comprehensively revising the business processes of planning, production, circulation, and sales, striving to establish the most suitable business model for consumers, where the key is mass production according to consumer needs.
With its unique business philosophy and model, UNIQLO has developed steadily. Now, Fast Retailing has become the top-ranked company in Japan's retail industry and one of the leading enterprises in the global apparel retail industry, with nearly 600 stores in Japan alone; it has achieved the miracle of doubling its annual revenue for three consecutive years: 111 billion yen in 1999, 228.9 billion yen in 2000, and 418.5 billion yen in 2001, thus ranking first in Japan's "Top Prosperous Enterprises of the 21st Century," becoming the highest market share casual wear brand in Japan. In September 2001, Fast Retailing opened its first overseas store in London, UK. Currently, UNIQLO has 15 specialty stores in the UK and was rated as the "Most Influential Excellent Enterprise in the UK Market in 2002" by the representative industry magazine "RetailWeek" within a year of entering Europe.
Relevant thematic articles: http://blog.china.com.cn/wgyvus6g/art/8087199.html
http://blog.chinabyte.com/a/2674675.html
http://www.diglog.com/story/finance_business_682750.html