Uniqlo and Theory, both brands belonging to Fast Retailing, have revealed their plans to take over the vacant Superdry store on Regent Street in London. The new store is scheduled to open in the spring of next year and will occupy a massive 1,900 square meters of space. This will be the first time both Uniqlo and Theory will be operating in the same location in the UK or Europe.
Tadashi Yanai, the Chairman, President, and CEO of Fast Retailing, emphasized the significance of Regent Street and the UK market to the company. He highlighted that Regent Street was one of the first Uniqlo stores to launch outside of Japan in 2001, and over the past two decades, the company has expanded its presence in the UK with numerous stores.
Currently, Uniqlo has a large store on the opposite side of the road, which is expected to close down, potentially paving the way for another global brand to occupy the space. The new store at 101-113 Regent Street will span across three floors, with Uniqlo occupying the lower ground, ground, and first floors, while Theory will exclusively occupy the ground floor. Customers will have the convenience of freely moving between the spaces of both brands.
In addition to the retail space, the new location will also house expanded head offices for Uniqlo and Theory’s UK and European operations. This is a significant development for the company as it marks the first time they will have an in-house press showroom for Uniqlo in the region.
When it was announced that Superdry would be vacating the space, the landlord, Great Portland Estates, hinted at a “global fashion brand” stepping in to take over. Considering the substantial annual rent of £4.3 million for the space, it was expected that a major brand would fill the vacancy. As Fast Retailing is also acquiring office space in the building, the exact details of the rental agreement have not been disclosed.
Useful links:
1. Uniqlo official website
2. Theory official website
