Uniqlo parent Fast Retailing has become the first apparel company in Japan to achieve 1 trillion yen of domestic sales.

Fast Retailing’s domestic Uniqlo sales rose 10 per cent to about 1.03 trillion yen (US$6.98 billion) in the year ended August, Nikkei reported, citing the company’s figures. 

As at the end of August, the number of Uniqlo stores in Japan was 784, with the first location opening in Hiroshima 41 years ago. Domestic sales include sales from these stores, as well as royalties from the brand’s e-commerce site and 10 franchise locations.

Nikkei noted that sales have significantly increased since FY22, thanks to reforms of stores and products.

Fast Retailing has closed 30 Uniqlo stores in the country over the past five years and expanded average sales floor space per store by 10 per cent. The larger retail space allowed more products to be displayed and boosted demand, resulting in a 13 per cent increase in average sales per store.

Another operational highlight was the launch of the ‘Management Cockpit’ platform, which collects information about product reviews from the online store and customer feedback from the support centre. The data was then used to improve existing products, develop new items, and create demand forecasts.

With the platform, the company was able to quickly produce products of high demand and shorten the lead time to sale, as well as avoid unsold items by reducing those of low demand.

On a group level, Fast Retailing’s consolidated sales revenue is expected to grow 10 per cent to 3.4 trillion yen in FY25 and net profit to increase 10 per cent to a record 410 billion yen.

Fast Retailing currently ranks third in terms of sales in the global apparel industry, following second-placed H&M and first-placed Inditex, parent of Zara.