Japanese company Fast Retailing, operator of Uniqlo (whom by the way, the A+P team loves and stocks up whenever in Asia or New York), reported a 9.6% fall in Q1 earnings compared with the same period last year. This was due to fierce competition from stores like Zara and H&M, as well as the prices of cotton and synthetic fibres soaring to all time highs in December. To combat the increasing competition and commodity prices, the company plans to restructure, reduce costs and focus on simplicity in their designs and the core market of Japan (currently accounting for 80% of sales). We at A+P Daily, are amateur retail consultants, and applaud Uniqlo’s decision to return to basics! We want to purchase quality basics at affordable prices and prefer not to buy outrageously expensive tops that have cheap fabric and intentional rips and holes (ahem, half cotton knit cobweb sweaters by Rodarte, we're looking at you).
In other news, +J (Jil Sander for Uniqlo) has a new collection hitting stores on Wednesday, January 26, 2011. Standout pieces include a Men's Cotton Military Khaki Parka (which can easily be unisex) and cashmere knit sweaters. Prices start as low as $19.90 and can reach up to as high as $229.90 for both Men and Women. If a bargain is more kind of your "thing", word on the street (as per Racked NY) is saying that the older collection from Jil Sander is currentlly on sale at the Soho Uniqlo Store in New York.
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