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UNIQLO

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31 views

UNIQLO

Uploaded by

Quỳnh Dương
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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UNIQLO: Apparel and Segmentation

UNIQLO is a Japanese clothing company, often described as a Japanese version


of the GAP, or "the Ikea of clothes." It was originally founded in Yamaguchi,
Japan in 1949 as a textiles manufacturer. UNIQLO's first store opened in Japan
in 1984. As an SPA (Specialty-store retailer of Private-label Apparel) controlling
the entire clothes-making process from design through manufacture and retail,
UNIQLO offers high-quality casualwear for men, women, and children at
reasonable prices.
UNIQLO's name comes from the words "Unique Clothing." It is a distinct brand
with a wide competitive set, including Gap and Primark at the basics end and Zara
at a more premium level. The company operates in a space that is not only
crowded in terms of competing retailers but also in the context of marketing
messages trying to target similar consumer segments. As a result, the company's
marketing team works hard to get its message across. Marketing innovations such
as the Uniqlock and the Loop are useful in helping to build communities and raise
the presence of the UNIQLO brand.
The company's vision is to become the world's number one casual clothing brand.
One key element of this vision is the establishment of a significant, growing, and
profitable overseas business. The first UNIQLO international store opened in the
United Kingdom in 2001. By August 2016. UNIQLO International constituted
approximately 45% of total UNIQLO sales, with 958 stores (versus 837 stores in
Japan). Typical store size is 1,600 square meters, roughly 16,160 square feet.
Flagship stores are larger, and these are located in key urban locations. At the
beginning of 2017. UNIQLO was present in seventeen countries, including Japan,
and offered online shopping and shipping to many more, even those where there
were no UNIQLO stores.
The founder and Chairman of UNIQLO, Tadashi Yanai, and the richest man in
Japan. understands that "we cannot win a dominant position in global markets
simply by imitating other companies. Instead, true to our unique clothing concept,
we seek to create clothes of the future with the potential to change the world."
This outsized philosophy is echoed in the company's mission statement: "To
create truly great clothing with new and unique value, and to enable people all
over the world to experience the joy. happiness, and satisfaction of wearing such
great clothes."
UNIQLO's global expansion has encountered some failures. In 2001, the first
overseas UNIQLO outlets were opened in Shanghai and shortly after, four more
in London, UK. The retailer set its sights on capturing customers in the United
States and the United Kingdom, but a year and a half of poor sales later, most of
the new stores were closed. Tadashi Yanai told CNN several years later that the
number one reason behind such a disappointing international performance was
UNIQLO's lack of brand recognition.
At present, UNIQLO has successfully established a unique strategic positioning
in the apparel industry in most countries of operation. It provides basic items as
"components" to be arranged with other components by the customers yet offers
high-quality items at an extremely low price. The diversity of shoppers attracted
to UNIQLO reflects its meticulous engineering. Mass allure permeates
UNIQLO's brand, underscored by its tagline, "Made for All." UNIQLO offers
colorful, logo-free designs that appeal to a wide range of consumers, but this does
not mean that everyone likes UNIQLO's clothing. The brand aims to design low-
cost garments with high-fashion sensibility, yielding clothes that can complement
both a faded pair of jeans and a designer coat. UNIQLO disguises the limited
variety of products it makes by offering them in almost every color imaginable.
"We have much fewer styles." says Odake, "especially when you compare us with
companies like H&M or Topshop or Zara. That's the secret of why we can get
better quality. We try to consolidate the fabric buys as much as possible. H&M
sales are bigger, but we have bigger orders. We take huge quantities, and we have
negotiation power."
Patrons of UNIQLO often describe its clothing as classic, comfortable, wearable,
and high quality sold at reasonable prices. UNIQLO draws people attracted by its
specialized products, such as lightweight jackets and T-shirts that are designed to
provide extra warmth in winter. However, not everybody buys UNIQLO, and the
company needs to carefully select appropriate segments of consumers to target.
Answers the Questions:
1. Discuss how issues of culture, language, climate, and religion would affect
marketing programs for UNIQLO clothes in international markets.
2. Which segments should UNQILO target to avoid failure in new markets?
3. How could UNIQLO market its clothes to local and global consumers?
4. What potential market segments can you identify from the information
provided in this case?

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