Fast Retailing
K. K. Fast Retailing (Japanese株式会社 ファースト リテイリング, Kabushiki - gaisha fāsuto riteiringu ) is a Japanese group of apparel retailing, which is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Nikkei 225 index. Group sales in fiscal year 2011, around 820.3 billion yen, equivalent to about 7.7 billion euros. Middle of 2012 employed 18,854 employees and Fast Retailing has its headquarters in Yamaguchi.
Company History
The Japanese businessman Hitoshi Yanai, whose ancestors had been already working in the retail business, founded in 1963, a family business for men's clothing called Ogori Shoji in the small western Japanese city of Ube ( Yamaguchi ). His son, Tadashi Yanai (* 1949), who in 1972 was joined in his father's business, opened in 1984 in Hiroshima, close to Ube, a retail store with inexpensive clothing for boys teenage called UNIQLO as a branch of Ogori Shoji. The clothing offered was initially cheap import goods and contributed later the brand UNIQLO. The company was renamed to Fast Retailing in 1991 and went in 1994, first in Hiroshima and 1999 in Tokyo at the stock exchange. Since then, the brand has established with reasonable prices worldwide in a fashion-conscious audience with clothing and accessories for women, men and children as a trendsetter. The company's own online store opened in 2000. 2001 the first shop abroad was opened in London. Yanai, the President and the single largest shareholder of the group (August 31, 2008: 26.68 %), is considered to be the richest man in Japan. The magazine "Forbes" estimated his fortune at $ 10.6 billion.
Group
The most important subsidiary of Fast Retailing is still the retail chain UNIQLO ( women's, men 's and children's fashion ) with worldwide retail stores. Further distribution brands include Comptoir des Cotonniers ( women's fashion ) Cabin Co. ( women's fashion ), Princesse tam.tam ( lingerie and swimwear ) and Foot Park (Shoes). The 2004 selling ladies fashion brand national standard was set in 2006. A 60% stake in ASPESI Japan was sold back in 2008 to the Italian clothing manufacturer Aspesi. 2004 also marked a 32.32 % stake in Link Theory Holdings ( LTH ) American- Japanese bought, what fashion among the main brands theory and Helmut Lang sells (the latter Prada in 2006 was sold to Theory). In the spring of 2009, the participation in LTH for about ¥ 30 billion (approx. € 240 million ) increased to 100 % and the company thus incorporated as a subsidiary in the Fast Retailing Group. An attempt by Fast Retailing in 2006 to take over Giordano International, the Hong Kong-based Great rivals in the Asian market, ended in failure. The attempt in 2007, for $ 900 million, the U.S. department store chain Barneys New York to take over from the Jones Apparel Group, failed. Another strong expansion is planned, including to Russia and India.
Uniqlo
UNIQLO ( an abbreviation of "unique clothing", in German: unique clothing ) is measured by the sales of the largest clothing retailer in Japan. More Uniqlo stores are made in China and Hong Kong, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Russia, Great Britain, Thailand, Taiwan, the USA and France. There are more than 1,100 stores, including more than 700 in Japan, in Tokyo alone about 100 (as of mid-2012 ) worldwide. The entry into the German market is planned for spring 2014. UNIQLO has about 30,000 employees and offers brand name clothing in the lower-priced basics range, comparable to that of Zara, Mango and H & M. With some well-known fashion designers will cooperate, as Philip Lim and Alexander Wang. Jil Sander introduced in the years 2009 to 2011 as Creative Director, her own label J on the market, which in 2011 was awarded the Brit Insurance Fashion Award at the Design Museum London. Their collaboration with a mass production company she commented that she Irritate the utopian goal of providing high-quality clothing for the masses. The democratic concept of UNIQLO Basics reminded her of Apple's fantastic design for everyone associated with Japanese tradition and a wealth of know -how.
Comptoir des Cotonniers
The label was founded in 1995 in Paris. Became famous for it through its marketing campaigns with unprofessional Models and mothers - daughters - castings. The company opened successively boutiques in Belgium, Germany, Great Britain, South Korea, USA and Japan. Since 2006 it belongs to the group Fast Retailing, May 2011 Dolphins Ninous took over the creative direction after she worked for brands such as Christian Lacroix, Diane von Furstenberg and Isabel Marant. For Fall / Winter 2012 features a scaled down jackets edition that the iconic Parisian " boite " combines style and ultra-light premium down technology developed in Japan for Uniqlo was developed in cooperation with its sister company Uniqlo.