Uniqlo to open first Vietnam store in 2019

Japanese fashion retailer Uniqlo has announced the plan to open the first store in HCM City in 2019 following Zara and H&M.

Japanese fashion retailer Uniqlo has announced the plan to open the first store in HCM City in 2019 following Zara and H&M.

   

Japanese fashion retailer Uniqlo

It will be operated through a joint venture between Fast Retailing and Mitsubishi Corporation, who will own 75% and 25% of the company respectively. This is part of the plan to expand business in South East Asia and Oceania and to increase the number of stores from 180 to 400 by 2022. There are currently 2,000 Uniqlo stores in 20 countries and regions.

The Uniqlo brand has become familiar among Vietnamese customers for quite a while. One of the most popular products is the UV protection coat and other products in the AIRism collection for the summer.

Vietnam’s retail market has become increasingly dynamic after Zara opened its store in HCM City in September 2016 and followed by H&M in September 2017. Zara has opened two stores in Hanoi and HCM City while H&M has a total of four stores and a plan to open two more.

Since both Zara and H&M opted to open their stores inside shopping centres, it's unclear if Uniqlo will also follow this trend or wants to has its own store on the street. Mitsubishi Corporation, who has many real estate investments in both Hanoi and HCM City, will no doubt profit.

In the first six months of 2018, Zara earned over VND950bn, much higher than last year's VND400bn. Vietnamese are spending more on fashion. According to BMI Research, in 2018, the fashion industry market will reach USD3.8bn in value and is forecasted to rise to USD5bn by 2021. Which means more fashion brands may enter Vietnam in the future.