Uniqlo launches in Sweden, plans Vietnam debut in 2019

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Aug 30, 2018

Fast Retailing is rolling out its Uniqlo chain further in key established markets as well as developing countries, and has just opened in retail giant H&M’s home market of Sweden, while also planning to set foot in Vietnam.

It will open its first store in Ho Chi Minh City in autumn next year, marking further growth for the brand in the key Southeast Asia region that it’s aggressively targeting at present. 

Describing Vietnam as “one of the region's most exciting, high-growth economies,” it said the entry will be a “milestone” and that Southeast Asia has been “an important driver of growth”.

Meanwhile, the company has also opened its first Uniqlo store in Sweden with chairman and CEO Tadashi Yanai saying the debut “is a big step toward becoming a global brand.”

It certainly made a big impact on opening day with over 1,000 people queuing outside the store in Stockholm. 

Although Asia remains the firm’s main target market, European expansion has also been important for the brand and it opened its first Spanish store last autumn. But its European store count was still only 75 as of last month with around 75% of its more-than-2,000 locations being in Japan, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. It also has 186 stores in South Korea.