Uniqlo's first Indian store opens at Ambience Mall

Uniqlo, leading Japanese apparel brand, has finally entered the Indian market with the launch of a sprawling store at the premium Ambience Mall in New Delhi’s Vasant Kunj area. Two more stores will soon go operational—in DLF Avenue, Saket and DLF Cyberhub at Gurgaon, Haryana.

“We are delighted to be in India. Opening a store here was a dream since India offers a huge market with its 1.3 billion population. It is a throbbing market for any apparel brand and we expect people to buy more clothing items. The 21^st century is the century of India,” said Tadashi Yanai, founder and chairman of Uniqlo and president and chief executive of the Fast Retailing Group, of which Uniqlo is a subsidiary, at a press conference ahead of the launch.

Spread across 35,000 sq ft over three floors, this is one of largest Uniqlo stores and offers choices for all—kids, men and women. The clothing line on display marks a fashion that is comfortable yet stylish and includes both formals and casuals. Uniqlo operates over 1,300 stores the world over.

“We are committed to the needs and choices of the people of India,” said Tadashi. “Right now, we are focusing on educating ourselves about the Indian market before making our presence felt in a big way here. We believe in slow fashion and use the latest technologies both of which eventually take care of the sustainability factor as also involving the neighbourhood in our progress.”

Tadashi said India has a huge pool of young professionals who are dynamic and talented, and Uniqlo would look forward to utilising them more as the company’s operations grow in the country.

A scintillating range of functional yet fashionable westernwear, alongside kurtas for which designer Rina Singh worked with local factories, aptly named Lifewear were also unveiled at the store.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (WE/DK)