Uniqlo plans multiple UK megastore openings

The UK was the first European country Uniqlo entered when it began expanding to the continent decades ago and it still rates the market highly with new plans announced to open a number of stores in Britain.

It will debut in Glasgow and Birmingham this autumn and has also confirmed its opening date for Liverpool — 24 April.

With the large size of the stores Uniqlo opens, these are major investments for parent company Fast Retailing and the Japanese group said they’re building on the recent successful new store openings in Edinburgh and London.

Given the firm’s well-established UK presence, it’s easy to forget how many key cities still don’t have a Uniqlo. The very first Scottish store on Princes Street store in Edinburgh opened only last April and so the planned Glasgow arrival will be only its second Scottish space. It will be on Argyle Street in the heart of Scotland’s most populous city, with three floors of sales, equating to 1,200 sq m. 

Meanwhile, the planned new Birmingham store will be Uniqlo’s first in the Midlands and will be located in the Bullring on New Street. It will have a sales floor of approximately 1,100 sq m, again covering three storeys to make the most of the footfall to the giant mall in the country’s second-largest city.

The product mix will feature LifeWear for all genders and all ages including kids and babies.

Paul O’Brien, Director of Leasing & Commercialisation at Bullring landlord Hammerson, said: “Bullring continues to attract best-in-class global brands seeking a flagship presence in the region, reinforcing its position as the leading Midlands destination. Uniqlo is the latest brand to make a significant commitment to Bullring, reflecting the strength of our position, quality of the asset, and exceptional line-up of leading names in retail.”

As mentioned, the Liverpool store will open in late April at the now-Landsec-controlled Liverpool One mega-mall. Located on Paradise Street, the large new store will feature Uniqlo’s popular services such as UTme! customisable T-shirt station and a dedicated Re.Uniqlo Studio for repairs and recycling.

It’s also collaborating with local partners for the opening with the activity set to kick off via Girls On The Go Liverpool, an organisation that promotes women’s health and empowerment and that will be hosting Uniqlo run clubs in the lead up to opening day.

The company currently has 20 UK stores, all of them large-format locations, with the most recent opening having been another London store, in Coal Drops Yard, King’s Cross.