Uniqlo opening first PH shop in June
Uniqlo, Japan’s leading apparel brand, is scheduled to open its first shop in the Philippines in June as part of efforts to tap the “enormous growth potential” in Asia, a key regional focus of its global expansion strategy.
Through a joint venture with SM Retail of the Sy family’s SM Investments Corp., Fast Retailing Co. of Japan is putting up the first Uniqlo shop at the SM Mall of Asia, one of the region’s largest shopping complexes. The shop will feature 1,550 square meters of floor space. It is expected to create about 100 new jobs for Filipinos.
Katsumi Kubota, chief operating officer of local unit Fast Retailing Philippines Inc., said in a briefing Thursday that tapping the Philippine market was a strategic move for the Japanese brand.
The target, he said, was to make Uniqlo the leading apparel brand in the country, which would reinforce Uniqlo’s rapidly growing retail presence in Southeast Asia. Its entry into the Philippines followed the opening of shops in Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.
According to Kubota, Fast Retailing would focus mainly on the retail business in the first few years, but may consider establishing manufacturing operations in the Philippines in the near future.
Kubota said the company would also consider tapping local designers for collaborative work on their apparel line in the future.
He, however, declined to divulge details of the company’s investments in the country and its specific expansion plans for the Philippine operations.
As of January 2012, Uniqlo’s network of stores covered 851 locations in Japan, 214 throughout the rest of Asia and 234 in other global markets.
Uniqlo opened its first store in Thailand in September 2011, following its successful expansion to Singapore and Malaysia. These increased its presence in Southeast Asia to 11 retail locations.
“As the brand continues to accelerate its regional expansion efforts, the Uniqlo Mall of Asia is set to offer the joy of truly great clothing to shoppers in the Philippines,” the company said.
