Japanese clothing major Uniqlo India is calling creative agencies for pitches. Nidhi Rastogi, marketing director of the Japanese clothing company said, she is looking for an agency to help shape the brand’s journey in India. In a LinkedIn post, she further wrote, “If you are passionate about the brand and have innovative ideas that can enhance brand love, we want to hear from you.”
In October 2023, Japan’s retail brand Uniqlo launched its first store in Mumbai, which happens to be the company’s second-best performing online market in India. The brand is also set to open its second store in Mumbai later in October and believes there is room to open more of them in the city.
Headquartered in Tokyo, the Japanese apparel brand opened its first store in India in October 2019 in New Delhi. It did take longer than its competitive brands like H&M and Zara to expand into the Indian market.
In a previous interview with Storyboard18, Tomohiko Sei, CEO, Uniqlo India, said that the company aims to build the LifeWear concept in India, which requires strong operations and well trained store managers. The LifeWear concept is about the Japanese values of simplicity, quality, and longevity.
Sei states one of the challenges globally is to find the right space at the right price. The company has launched 10 stores in India over the last four years, which will rise to 12 with the Mumbai stores. The strategy now is to increase brand awareness, Sei says. The brand posted a 69 percent increase in India unit sales while profit nearly tripled during the year ended March 2023.
Globally, Uniqlo signs up long-term sponsorship deals with top athletes. The apparel maker develops new products with them not only while they are active professionally but also after their retirement. Very few brands are committed to this deeply in the sports arena.
In India, Uniqlo recently roped in Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif as its first brand ambassador in India to woo affluent shoppers.
Read more: Uniqlo expands footprint in India, aims to build LifeWear concept and promote sustainability