UNIQLO Receives "Business Impact of the Year" Award from the Magnificent Mile Association in Chicago

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Feb 08, 2016, 09:34 ET

CHICAGO, Feb. 8, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Following its North Michigan Avenue store grand opening on October 23 last year, UNIQLO has been honored by one of Chicagoland's most active business associations, The Magnificent Mile Association, as the "Business Impact of the Year" award recipient.

The award recognizes one business or company each year that positively contributes to the enhancement of Chicago's famous Michigan Avenue or "Magnificent Mile," which welcomes an average of 50,000 pedestrians a day.

Commenting on this prestigious award, Hiroshi Taki, UNIQLO USA CEO, said "The Magnificent Mile is one of the nation's best and most popular high streets, that draws visitors from all around the world. It is an honor for UNIQLO to be a resident of this street and to offer our LifeWear products to the many people who shop there daily. We look forward to continuing to enhance the daily lives of not just Chicagoans, but everyone who comes to our store, with our innovative, high quality, fashionable clothes."

The UNIQLO Michigan Avenue store was voted as the winner by the Magnificent Mile Association's executive committee, for its landmark design, energy, and employment it brought to the area surrounding its opening, where Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago Bulls' "Luvabulls" were present.

John Chikow, President and CEO of the Magnificent Mile Association, commented, "UNIQLO demonstrated great vision in designing a flagship experience that is emblematic of their brand: bright, colorful and wholly inviting to shoppers exploring the Magnificent Mile. The multi-story space is immersive, and the extensive retails offerings are sure to become a staple in the district."

The award will be presented at the association's annual meeting on February 9, and will be accepted by the store's leadership team: Tomomi Tanaka, Stacy Hamai, Rolena Richardson, and Jerusha Mahon.

About UNIQLO LifeWear
Apparel that comes from the Japanese values of simplicity, quality and longevity. Designed to be of the time and for the time, LifeWear is made with such modern elegance that it becomes the building blocks of each individual's style. A perfect shirt that is always being made more perfect. The simplest design hiding the most thoughtful and modern details. The best in fit and fabric made to be affordable and accessible to all. LifeWear is clothing that is constantly being innovated, bringing more warmth, more lightness, better design, and better comfort to people's lives.

About UNIQLO and Fast Retailing
UNIQLO is a brand of Fast Retailing Co., Ltd., a leading global Japanese retail holding company that designs, manufactures and sells clothing under seven main brands: Comptoir des Cotonniers, GU, Helmut Lang, J Brand, Princesse tam.tam, Theory, and UNIQLO. With global sales of approximately 1.6817 trillion yen for the 2015 fiscal year ending August 31, 2015 (US $13.88 billion, calculated in yen using the end of August 2015 rate of $1 = 121.18 yen), Fast Retailing is one of the world's largest apparel retail companies, and UNIQLO is Japan's leading specialty retailer.

UNIQLO continues to open large-scale stores in some of the world's most important cities and locations, as part of its ongoing efforts to solidify its status as a truly global brand. Today the company has a total of more than 1,700 stores in 17 markets worldwide: Japan, Australia, Belgium, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, U.K. and the U.S. In addition, Grameen UNIQLO, a social business established in Bangladesh in September 2010, currently operates several Grameen UNIQLO stores in Dhaka. UNIQLO manages an integrated business model under which it designs, manufactures, markets and sells high-quality, casual apparel. The company believes that truly great clothes should be supremely comfortable, feature universal designs, are of high quality and offer a superb fit to everyone who wears them.

With a corporate statement committed to changing clothes, changing conventional wisdom and change the world, Fast Retailing is dedicated to creating great clothing with new and unique value to enrich the lives of people everywhere. For more information about UNIQLO and Fast Retailing, please visit www.uniqlo.com and www.fastretailing.com.

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