MAGAZINE B 

Uniqlo started off in 1984 as an apparel store in Hiroshima, Japan, by Tadashi Yanai, who learned the ins and outs of the trade through his father’s menswear shop. At a time when casual clothing was associated with young people in the early 1990s, Uniqlo introduced its specialty store retailer of private label apparel, or SPA, system. The philosophy behind the move—that everyone should be able to easily purchase clothing—rounded out the brand’s concept of maintaining a reasonable price structure, simple logo-free designs, and practical garments made of high-quality materials. Now thought of as “LifeWear,” Uniqlo’s products are essentials sold in more than 2,500 stores worldwide, including the company’s home base city Tokyo. Today, Uniqlo’s functional products such as the HEATTECH and AIRism lines have become indispensable wardrobe staples, and the brand continues to evolve and provide new clothing experiences through collaborative collections like Uniqlo U and Uniqlo : C.