Japanese clothing brand Uniqlo’s popularity grows in Western markets

Uniqlo parent Fast Retailing is aiming for higher sales in 2025, after its expansion into newer markets in the West helped the Japanese apparel-store operator offset a slowdown in China.

The company behind the clothing brands Uniqlo and GU said it expects operating profit for the year started September 1 to be $US3.5 billion ($5.2b), up from the previous fiscal year and higher than estimated by analysts.

The latest outlook comes after the retailer posted stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter results, boosted by robust growth in revenue and profit from its business across North America, Europe and countries across the Asia-Pacific. Uniqlo has four stores in Western Australia.

Sales in China, currently Fast Retailing’s biggest market outside Japan, declined in the past two quarters.

The company reiterated a plan announced earlier this year to close under-performing stores and revamp bigger and better-located ones to drive sales in the country.

Fast Retailing’s years-long push into Western markets has spawned an alternative source of revenue that’s substantial enough to make up for a slowdown in China.

Revenue and profit generated from Uniqlo stores in North America and Europe rose substantially in the 2024 fiscal year as the brand’s functional basics gained greater consumer recognition there.

Other than Uniqlo, Fast Retailing’s casual wear GU brand also reported a robust profit increase during this period thanks in part to a successful expansion into the US.

Bloomberg.