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Tag: uniqlo

  • Uniqlo to open Rome flagship store at the Galleria Alberto Sordi

    Uniqlo to open Rome flagship store at the Galleria Alberto Sordi

    Uniqlo will open its first store in Rome’s Galleria Alberto Sordi on Via del Corso, a key boulevard in the city’s historical heart, in the spring of next year.

    The new store will feature clothing labels for women, men, and children and have a total sales floor area of more than 1300sqm divided across three floors. Following the opening of its first location in Milan’s Piazza Cordusio in September 2019, this will be Uniqlo’s second store in the country.

    “It is an honour for us to open in the capital of Italy, a city with such a strong cultural heritage, and increase our presence in the Italian market with a store in the Galleria Alberto Sordi, an important retail location that first opened 100 years ago,” said Mark Barnatovic, Uniqlo Italy COO.

    “We look forward to offering our Uniqlo LifeWear, apparel that is created from our Japanese values of quality, simplicity, and longevity and helps improve people’s daily lives, to Uniqlo fans and customers in Italy as well as visitors from abroad.”

    Uniqlo has also increased its presence in India, opening its first store in Mumbai in July, bringing the brand’s total store count in the nation to 11.

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  • Uniqlo parent’s profit seen soaring to a Q3 record on China recovery

    Uniqlo parent’s profit seen soaring to a Q3 record on China recovery

    The Japanese operator of apparel retailer Uniqlo is expected by analysts to post a 25 percent jump in profit to a third-quarter record on Thursday (Jul 13), when the focus will be on whether its sales recovery in China is on track.

    Fast Retailing’s operating profit in the three months through May likely reached 102.4 billion yen (US$733.37 million), according to the average of forecasts from seven analysts surveyed by Refinitiv. That’s compared to 81.8 billion yen posted last year, a company record for the third quarter.

    The company, known for its fleece jackets and inexpensive basics, has 925 Uniqlo outlets in mainland China, more than in Japan and making it a bellwether for a retail market that was hammered by strict COVID-19 restrictions in recent years.

    Business in China started to turn around in January, resulting in sharp increases in sales and profit from the region in the second quarter, the company said in April.

    Fast Retailing’s shares have soared 30 percent so far this year, helping founder Tadashi Yanai cement his place as Japan’s richest person. The shares have outpaced a 23 percent advance in the benchmark Nikkei which has been one of the hottest equity markets worldwide.

    “The recovery in China has been weaker than expected, but Uniqlo is well positioned,” said Jamie Halse, who manages US$500 million in Japan strategies at Platinum Asset Management in Sydney but does not currently own Fast Retailing shares. “We have a positive view on the business, but are apprehensive of the elevated expectations represented in a premium valuation.”

    While China languished under lengthy pandemic curbs, Fast Retailing put more focus on its North American and European operations.

    Uniqlo had 61 locations in North America as of February, and is adding four stores in the US and two in Canada this summer as part of a plan to reach 200 by 2027.

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  • Japanese brand Uniqlo has decided to leave Russia after suspending its operation there last year.

    Japanese brand Uniqlo has decided to leave Russia after suspending its operation there last year.

    Japanese brand Uniqlo has decided to leave Russia after suspending its operation there last year, paving the way for a sale of the business, the Izvestia newspaper cited Russia’s deputy trade minister as saying.

    Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing suspended the clothing brand’s operations in Russia in March, 2022, joining scores of international companies, after Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in what it dubbed a “special military operation”.

    Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Viktor Yevtukhov said the company has decided to completely leave Russia but has not yet submitted an application to the government, which means the chain has no buyer yet, Izvestia reported on Tuesday.

    “I think they can offer potential buyers their business model,” Izvestia cited Yevtukhov as saying. “The Japanese retailer will be able to offer … lease agreements, popular points of sale with the good buyers traffic and equipment.”

    Fast Retailing said in a statement its operation in Russia remains suspended, adding some stores were closed with “no foreseeable prospects to resume operations.”

    The statement said the company will continue to monitor the situation closely and make decisions accordingly.

    Tadashi Yanai, the founder of Fast Retailing, told Japanese media earlier that Uniqlo was operating 50 stores in Russia.

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  • Fast Retailing’s Uniqlo to add stores in North America

    Fast Retailing’s Uniqlo to add stores in North America

    According to one of its executives, fast Retailing’s Uniqlo plans to expand its existing stores in North America by 10 percent.

    Uniqlo is opening six stores — four in the US and two in Canada — this summer as part of its expansion plan to reach more than 200 locations in North America by 2027. The company hopes to open 20 to 30 stores each year as a part of the goal.

    The US stores, which will be located in malls in two California locations, Maryland and New Jersey, are in areas where the chain already has a presence.

    The two Canadian stores opening in Ottawa and Calgary — the first Uniqlo locations in those cities — each total 15,000 square feet (1,393.55 square meters).

    Each of the new stores will be equipped with self-checkout kiosks, in-store pickup and free clothing alterations.

    Fast Retailing reported a 16.4 percent rise to US$1.65 billion in first-half operating profit earlier this month. The company also raised its full-year profit forecast to $2.7 billion from$2.63 billion.

    Daisuke Tsukagoshi, Uniqlo North America chief executive, said in an email to Reuters that the chain chose to launch the Ottawa and Calgary stores after seeing a “strong online presence” there.

    The Tokyo-based retailer currently has 47 stores in the US and 16 locations in Canada.

    “We’re looking to locations where we have already seen high customer demand, as well as new markets that we see opportunity in,” Tsukagoshi added.

    Tsukagoshi said that localizing product offerings in the US’s various regions has been “challenging” as shoppers deal with different climates and experiences.

    He said Uniqlo is in a “unique position” to open stores in the current economic environment as shoppers trade down and turn to accessible pricing for essential styles.

    Uniqlo has gained popularity in the US for its relatively low pricing including women’s t-shirts for $14.90 and men’s zip-up jackets for $39.90.

    According to its website, Uniqlo currently has 1,028 stores in Greater China and 79 in Europe.

    For comparison, Gap Inc boasts more than 2,100 stores, including Old Navy and the Gap brand, in the US alone. However, the company plans to close approximately 350 Gap and Banana Republic locations by the end of 2023.

    According to the retailer’s website, Sweden’s fast fashion giant H&M has more than 738 stores in North and South America as of February 2023.

  • Japanese retailers expand in Vietnam, targeting affluent

    Japanese retailers expand in Vietnam, targeting affluent

    Targeting consumers is not much affected by the difficult economic situation, Japanese retailers are opening more stores in Vietnam.

    Uniqlo, which has 15 stores in Vietnam after entering three years ago, last month announced plans to expand to the southern province of Binh Duong, with a first store to be opened this spring or summer.

    Also in Vietnam for three years, MUJI opened a 2,000-square meter store in HCMC’s Thu Duc City that sells everything from food, home appliances and clothing to furniture, stationery and accessories.

    Even amid the Covid pandemic and economic distress, it had five stores, three in HCMC and two in Hanoi.
    Its stores in Vietnam are the largest at around 2,000 square meters on average.

    “The size in Vietnam is almost double the average in other countries, including Japan,” Tetsuya Nagaiwa, general director of MUJI Vietnam, said.

    He added that it plans to open more stores in Hanoi in the second quarter of this year.

    Aeon started building its seventh outlet in Vietnam in February in the central city of Hue. at a cost of U$169.67 million. It will be the largest mall in the central region when it opens by April 2025.

    A recent business survey by the Japan External Trade Promotion Organization found that 100% of Japanese retail businesses in Vietnam expect profits to increase this year.

    Of them 80% said they would expand in the next one to two years.

    Japanese retailers are doing well partly because, like everywhere else, high income earners in Vietnam are recession proof.

    “We see strong demand for high-value products,” Nagaiwa said, adding that MUJI’s sales remained good because young consumers prefer its stationery, cosmetics and furniture.

    Japanese chains also sell online shopping support made-in- Vietnam products.

    In November 2021 Uniqlo started selling online through an application, and introducing Vietnamese agricultural products.

    MUJI has steadily increased the local content rate and looked for local suppliers.

    Nagaiwa said goods made in Vietnam account for 30% of its products and 97-98% in the case of products like T-shirts, backpacks and messenger bags. “We hope these numbers will increase in future.”

    After discovering that the Vietnamese stationery market only had the popular and high-end segments and not the mid-range one, MUJI started selling ballpoint pens for VND19,000 ($0.8), attracting students, who liked Japanese goods with minimalist designs.

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  • Uniqlo parent says profit slipped as Japan, China drag growth

    Uniqlo parent says profit slipped as Japan, China drag growth

    Japan’s Fast Retailing Co, owner of clothing brand Uniqlo, said on Thursday that first quarter earnings slid 2%, reflecting weakness at home and continuing COVID-19 restrictions in China.

    A day after announcing plans for big wage rises, the company said operating profit had been 117.1 billion yen ($889.82 million) in the three months to the end of November, compared with 119.4 billion yen a year earlier.

    The consensus forecast was for 135.3 billion yen, according to the average of five analyst estimates collected by Refinitiv.

    Domestic results were hit by warmer weather in November that stifled sales of fall and winter wear, while COVID curbs continued to weigh on China, including the temporary closure of 247 stores in Beijing and Guangzhou.

    “Once ‘with corona’ lifestyles take root, we think a normal operations will come back on the Chinese mainland,” CFO Takeshi Okazaki told reporters.

    Sales and earnings in all other regions increased. The company held its full-year operating profit forecast at 350 billion yen.

    The company, Japan’s biggest retailer, sent shockwaves through the country on Wednesday by saying it would lift its employees’ wages by as much as 40%. That greatly satisfied policymakers, who had been urging employers to raise wages to help offset the highest inflation in a generation.

    “From a macro perspective, this move highlights that it is becoming increasingly difficult for Japanese companies to attract and retain workers,” said Mark Chadwick, an independent equities analyst who publishes on the Smartkarma platform.

    Fast Retailing, which operates more than 3,500 clothing stores worldwide, reported record profit last fiscal year, as growth in North America and Europe compensated for a slump in China.

    The company is seen as a bellwether for the Chinese market, where it produces many of its goods and operates almost 900 Uniqlo stores, more than in Japan.

    Fast Retailing’s share price slid 2% in Tokyo trade, compared to a flat benchmark Nikkei index.

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  • Uniqlo owner set for record annual profit, but all eyes on China showing

    Uniqlo owner set for record annual profit, but all eyes on China showing

    Japan’s Fast Retailing Co, owner of clothing brand Uniqlo, is expected to post a record annual profit on Thursday as the yen’s slump has boosted the value of its overseas sales even as soaring living costs dampen prospects for retailers.

    The company, Japan’s biggest retailer, has posted strong performances in North America and Europe in the first three quarters of the fiscal year that ended in August, but investors will look for signs of a recovery in China, its biggest foreign market with nearly 900 stores.

    Operating profit for the fiscal year is expected to rise nearly 17% to 291 billion yen ($1.99 billion), according to an average of 12 analyst estimates from Refinitiv. Fast Retailing has forecast 290 billion yen.

    That would exceed the previous profit record of 263 billion yen in the year ended in August 2019. For the fourth quarter, analysts expect a 7% drop in profit.

    The company, founded by Japan’s richest man, Tadashi Yanai, is a bellwether for global retailers operating in China, the world’s second-biggest economy but where sales and profits have been hurt by strict COVID-19 control measures.

    As its Chinese operations slumped, Fast Retailing has put increased focus on North America and expects to turn an annual profit in the region for the first time this year.

    But even in the United States and Europe, people are avoiding shopping for clothes, hurting sales at companies including H&M and prompting retailers to slash prices to clear inventory.

    “China is continuously failing to live up to the company’s expectations and the only factors holding Uniqlo’s share price from breaking down are the North America growth and the yen depreciation,” LightStream Research analyst Oshadhi Kumarasiri wrote in a report on the Smartkarma platform.

    “Those too are now under threat, with a looming recession and Fed rate hikes failing to curb inflation,” he said.

    The yen slid to a fresh 24-year low against the dollar on Wednesday. Fast Retailing’s shares are up 18% in 2022, compared with an 8.5% drop in the benchmark Nikkei index.

    Yanai, who founded the company and owned about 21% of it as of February, and his family had a net worth of $23.6 billion as of May, according to Forbes.

    Seven & I Holdings, another Japanese retailer with a large U.S. footprint, raised its full-year profit forecastlast week, citing the weak yen and strong fuel sales at its convenience stores in North America.

  • Uniqlo to expand physical presence into Poland

    Uniqlo to expand physical presence into Poland

    Japan’s leading fast-fashion brand Uniqlo is opening a pop-up in Domy Towarowe Wars Sawa Junior in Warsaw, the capital city of Poland, this fall.

    The opening of the two-floor, 8,600-square-foot pop-up store will mark the first time the Fast Retailing-owned brand will extend its physical presence to Poland, a market served by the retailer’s Europe online store for the past six years.

    The brand operates offline stores in the U.K., France, Belgium, Germany, Spain, Denmark, Sweden, Netherlands and Italy.

    Located a stone’s throw from the landmark building Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw, the store will stock items from the brand’s women’s, men’s and babies collections.

    Taku Morikawa, chief executive officer of Uniqlo Europe, said the decision to establish a physical presence in this new market “builds on our experience of offering customers the latest products via the Uniqlo Europe online store.”

    “Through our pop-up store, we hope to gain a deeper understanding of the Polish market and use learnings to make long-term plans for the future,” he added.

    In a previous interview, Morikawa said that Uniqlo’s European expansion plans are not to increase sales, at least not for now.

    “The priority now is to show our company and to be respected by the consumers with flagship stores showing everything and offering a good shopping experience,” he said.

    Scott Dwyer, group managing director of retail at Atrium European Real Estate, the owner of Wars Sawa Junior, believes Uniqlo will “feel right at home” as “Wars Sawa Junior is the perfect place to start a presence in the Polish market for the most popular international brands.”

    “The location is right in the bustling city center, close to the city’s busiest commuting hubs, business districts and most popular tourist attractions. By working with brands such as Uniqlo, we wish to attract a new generation of customers that values a genuine relationship with brands and the ability to directly experience the products they offer.”

  • Uniqlo owner to raise prices on fleece products due to weak yen

    Uniqlo owner to raise prices on fleece products due to weak yen

    The owner of Japanese clothing brand Uniqlo said on Tuesday it will raise prices on some goods this fall, reflecting increasing cost pressures from the weak yen and logistical hurdles.

    Prices on fleece goods and down jackets in the fall/winter product lines will go up by 1,000 yen (US$7.54), a spokesperson confirmed, after an earlier report by the Jiji news service. The company is also increasing the use of recycled polyester in its fleece products to keep costs down.

    Consumer prices are surging in Japan after decades of deflation, driven by the yen’s drop to a 20-year low against the dollar and soaring energy costs.

    Fast Retailing has competed on low-cost basics like socks and underwear for decades, but its executives have warned recently that rising production costs would necessitate price hikes.

    Founder Tadashi Yanai in April railed against the decline in Japan’s currency, saying there was “absolutely no merit” in a weak yen.

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  • Uniqlo owner sees big profit drop in China due to Covid restrictions

    Uniqlo owner sees big profit drop in China due to Covid restrictions

    The owner of Japanese clothing brand Uniqlo on Thursday flagged a big profit drop in China due to COVID-19 restrictions, while its chief executive sounded alarm about the weakening yen’s potential to drive up costs.

    Fast Retailing is a rare bellwether for both global retailers in China, its biggest foreign market, and consumer demand in Japan, where it has carved out a dominant position by offering casual clothing to famously price-conscious shoppers.

    It and other multi-national retailers are now being forced to deal with lockdown measures in China. Fast Retailing has 863 stores on the mainland and almost 90 outlets in Shanghai, where strict measures, introduced in late March, remain in place to contain the country’s worst outbreak of the pandemic.

    McDonald’s and Starbucks, which each have dozens of outlets in Shanghai, have also been impacted as has production for retailers such as H&M, and Nike.

    Fast Retailing said it expects revenue declines and a large drop in profit in its Greater China segment in the second half and for the whole of fiscal 2022 due to COVID restrictions.

    Sales in the Greater China region, which includes Hong Kong and Taiwan, were hit in March, as up to 133 stores were temporarily shut.

    It has more Uniqlo stores in China than in Japan. It opened a flagship store in Beijing in November, and plans to open in 100 locations in the country each year.

    Separately, luxury brand Hermes said it had a strong start of the year in China until the beginning of March and is confident stores closed in Shanghai will reopen quickly.

    But the weakening yen and higher costs have forced Fast Retailing to consider price rises, a major shift for a company that has long competed on price.

    “There’s absolutely no merit to a weak yen,” Chief Executive Tadashi Yanai told reporters.

    “Japan is engaged in the business of importing raw materials from all over the world, processing them, adding value to them, and selling them. In this context, there is no advantage if the value of a country’s currency weakens.”

    The yen has been hammered this year, falling to the weakest level in almost 20 years against the dollar. For many Japanese companies that manufacture offshore – like Fast Retailing – the weak yen is less of a benefit than for traditional exporters.

    The company reported a record half-year profit on Thursday, buoyed by sales growth in North America, Europe, and other parts of Asia, while revenue and profit declined in Japan and China.

    Operating profit climbed 18% to 189 billion yen ($1.51 billion) in the six months through February from a year earlier.

    The company maintained its full-year profit forecast at 270 billion yen. That compares with a consensus forecast for annual profit to total 278 billion yen, according to a Refinitiv poll of 11 analysts.

    The Ukraine crisis has created another headwind, leading the company to close its 50 stores in Russia, after it initially resisted calls to exit the market along with other major brands.

    Prior to the earnings release, shares in Fast Retailing closed up 2.1%, versus a 1.2% gain in the broader market.

  • Uniqlo launches online alteration service

    Uniqlo launches online alteration service

    Fashion is a great tool of self-expression, but it’s not always accessible for people with disabilities, illnesses, and injuries. Since a lot of clothes can be hard to put on when your mobility is limited, there are very few clothes available, and a lot of disabled people, especially in Japan, have a hard time finding clothing that’s easy to wear but also stylish.

    That’s why former Uniqlo employee Teppei Maeda started clothing alterations service Kiyasuku, which translates as “easy to put on” or “easy to wear.” After discussing clothing options for people with disabilities with a hearing-impaired coworker, Maeda decided to interview hundreds of people to learn more. That’s how he found out that the biggest fashion challenge for people with disabilities is that there just aren’t enough types of clothes they can wear.

    So Maeda began to think about what he could do to help, and that’s how Kiyasuku, Japan’s first-ever online tailoring service specifically for individuals with disabilities, was born. The company offers to modify the parts of clothes that make them difficult to put on. For example, they can alter T-shirts and sweatshirts so that they open up in the front, and remove zippers and buttons and replace them with velcro. They can work with all kinds of garments, from casual wear to outerwear. That’s a service that’s hard to find.

    The order process is also extremely easy and all done online. Once you have an item of clothing you want to be altered, you access the website, indicate what alterations you want, and choose your tailor. After a digital meeting with the tailor through the website, you send off your clothes via the post, and they’ll fix it up for you and send it back.

    The staff at Kiyasuku are highly dedicated to the cause with an earnest desire to help people in need, so you can rest assured that your clothing will be well taken care of. One member is even the parent of a child with a disability, who learned to sew by altering clothes for their child.

    Kiyasuku sounds like a great service that lets people wear clothes they want to wear, not just because it’s something they’ll be able to wear. Want to wear the latest Pokemon graphic tees from UNIQLO, but can’t pull them over your head? Want to be comfy and stylish at home with hakama pajamas but find them tricky to get on? Or have you always wanted to go gothic lolita but never thought you could be able to put all the different pieces together? Kiyasuku can probably help.

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  • Uniqlo plans five more stores in Singapore

    Uniqlo plans five more stores in Singapore

    Apparel retailer Uniqlo says it will open another five stores in Singapore, taking its network there to 31 stores.

    The first neighbourhood store will open at Ang Mo Kio and Clementi in the first quarter of this year. Uniqlo says the 1297sqm store will be a testbed for inclusive in-store features such as a wheelchair-friendly fitting room, community partnership projects, and sustainability initiatives.

    The locations of the other four new stores have yet to be confirmed.

    Yuki Yamada, CEO at Uniqlo Singapore and Malaysia, said: “To complement our existing network of mall-based outlets, the new store at Ang Mo Kia 51 will bring LifeWear essentials closer home to the heartlanders to enjoy shopping convenience.

    “As a global retailer, we are in a unique position to use our business to benefit the community around us by offering greater inclusivity and contributing meaningfully to a more sustainable society,” she added.

    The brand works with special education schools and social service organisations to provide an assisted shopping experience to customers with special needs in their preferred time slots which must be booked in advance.

    The company has also launched Uniqlo Repair Studio in store, the first permanent offering in Asia to extend the life of Uniqlo’s clothing. Trained staff at the site will repair and alter damaged clothing.

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  • Uniqlo set to come to Hai Phong

    Uniqlo set to come to Hai Phong

    Japanese fashion brand Uniqlo plans to open its first store in the northern city of Hai Phong this summer.

    It will be a 2,000-square-meter outlet at Aeon Mall Le Chan.

    Uniqlo, which came to the Vietnamese market two years ago, now has 10 stores in Hanoi and HCMC.

    Globally, it has over 2,300 in 25 countries and territories.

    German research firm Statista estimates Vietnam’s fashion industry to grow at an average annual rate of 22.5 percent in 2017-22 to reach US$988 million.

  • Uniqlo owner’s profits boosted by overseas surge as Japan sales fall

    Uniqlo owner’s profits boosted by overseas surge as Japan sales fall

    Japan’s Fast Retailing, owner of clothing brand Uniqlo, said on Thursday overseas markets powered profit growth in the first quarter, even as sales declined at home and in China.

    The results marked a reversal from the past few years when China and Japan were the big sales and profit growth drivers for the retailer.

    Operating profit rose 5.6 percent to 119.4 billion yen ($1.04 billion) in the three months ended Nov. 30. That beat the market’s consensus of 102.6 billion yen, according to the average of analysts’ forecasts from Refinitiv.

    The company maintained its forecast for operating profit to climb 8.4 percent to 270 billion yen in the fiscal year ending in August.

    Uniqlo’s international business reported record first-quarter results, driven by sales from South Asia, North America, and Europe. The pandemic weighed on results in China, while warm weather in Japan depressed sales of Fall and Winter clothes.

    The company said in October it expects a gradual recovery to pre-pandemic levels as Covid-19 vaccinations progress and as it makes further inroads in the Chinese market.

    Fast Retailing opened a flagship store in Beijing in November, its third megastore in mainland China, and plans to open 100 locations in the country each year going forward.

    But the company has also flagged the risk of continued production and logistic delays that have plagued major clothing groups. In September, Fast Retailing said some clothing releases would be delayed due to pandemic-related lockdowns at partner factories in Vietnam.

    In addition, the rapid depreciation of the yen is raising costs for raw materials and shipping, adding to domestic pricing pressure, chief financial officer Takeshi Okazaki told reporters in Tokyo.

    “We have reached a point where we have no choice but to raise the prices of some products,” he said.

    As the company becomes increasingly global, strength or weakness of the yen will become less important, and stable currency markets are ideal for operations, he added.

    Fast Retailing’s shares have fallen 9.5 percent year-to-date, compared with a 1.1 percent drop in the benchmark Nikkei 225 index.

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  • Uniqlo clothes plans to produce from recycled materials by 2030

    Uniqlo clothes plans to produce from recycled materials by 2030

    Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing says its clothes will be made of 50% recycled materials by 2030 as it works toward its goal of carbon neutrality by 2050.

    The goal was announced on Thursday along with other sustainability targets and follows an announcement in February that Fast Retailing is shooting for carbon neutrality by 2050.

    Currently, about 15% of the polyester the apparel maker uses comes from recycled PET bottles. The company says it will start with synthetic fibers such as rayon and nylon as it begins to raise its garments’ recycled materials ratio.

    Fast also articulated its carbon emissions reduction plan toward 2030. In its own operations, the company intends to reduce these emissions by 90% from 2019 levels.

    Improving energy efficiency at its stores will be key as the stores account for the majority of the company’s total emissions. Fast aims to emit 40% less from its roadside stores and 20% less from its stores inside malls.

    It will accelerate its stores’ switch from electricity to renewable energy sources. Currently, 64 Uniqlo stores in nine European countries run on renewable energy. All stores in North America and some in Southeast Asia will follow suit and complete the switch by the end of this fiscal year ending next August, the company said.

    Fast also aims to encourage companies along its supply chain to reduce their emissions. Among its raw material providers and sewing factories, it is shooting for a 20% cut in emissions by 2030, based on 2019 levels.

    It will consider granting financial support to help factories invest in facilities.

    The fashion industry is widely considered the world’s second most polluting industry.

    Fast Retailing Director Koji Yanai told reporters that the company will reduce waste by improving the accuracy of its production volume forecasts and by reforming its logistics operations. It expects these steps to help it sell out of what it makes.

    The casual apparel maker will also collect more used clothes. Yanai said the company hopes to launch a collection service that utilizes the delivery personnel involved in bringing orders to customers’ doors. In Yanai’s vision, when a new jacket is delivered, the customer will be able to hand the driver an old jacket.

    Fast also plans to collaborate more with manufacturers in other industries, including carmakers and building material producers. It and material maker Toray will set up a research facility in 2022 that will specialize in the circulation of apparel and new material development.

    Other apparel brands are moving in the same direction. Patagonia, a U.S.-based maker of outdoor clothing, intends to make its garments with all recycled materials by 2025. Swedish fast-fashion giant Hennes & Mauritz has a 2030 goal for all of its clothing to be made of either recycled or sustainably sourced materials.

    Compared with other brands, Fast’s target is relatively lackluster. “We’re putting our customers first and presenting this as the maximum number our brand can commit to,” Yanai said. “We do not consider our target low.

    “From now on, people will evaluate what kind of responsibility each brand is trying to fulfill after selling clothes.”

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