Fast Retailing contemplating UK alliance

Tadashi Yanai, the chief executive of Fast Retailing, operator of casual clothing chain Uniglo, is contemplating an acquisition or alliance in order to boost its position in the UK, according to a report in the Financial Times. Fast Retailing also acknowledges that, in addition to its factories in China, it needs to establish factories in the EU and the US in order to make the supply chain more efficient. Uniglo has eight stores in the UK, down from the 21 that were open in 2002. Yanai told the FT that he hoped to open new flagship stores in London and New York in 2006.

In its efforts to become a global retailer, Fast Retailing is spending JPY300 billion (£1.47 billion) to JPY400 billion on mergers and acquisitions over the next three to four years. In addition to its eight UK stores, the retailer has 703 franchised and managed outlets in Japan, nine in China, four in Korea, three in the UK and one in Hong Kong.