Christophe Lemaire Appointed Artistic Director Of UNIQLO Paris R&D Center and New "Uniqlo U" Line

First Collection under His Directorship to Launch from Fall/Winter 2016 Season

Bangkok, June 9, 2016 - UNIQLO today announces the appointment of Christophe Lemaire as Artistic Director of the newly established UNIQLO Paris R&D Center and the new “Uniqlo U” line. The first Uniqlo U collection has been created with Lemaire’s dedicated Paris team and will be unveiled in Paris in early July. Uniqlo U features innovations in keeping the “LifeWear” philosophy of providing comfortable clothing that matches all lifestyles. The line will launch worldwide from the Fall/Winter 2016 season.

Commenting on today’s announcement, Tadashi Yanai, Fast Retailing Chairman, President & CEO said, “I am delighted to welcome Mr. Christophe Lemaire as a member of the UNIQLO team. I have time and again been astonished by his outstanding talent in working together to create the UNIQLO AND LEMAIRE collection. I look forward seeing more of the innovations that he inspires, and I am confident that his tremendous experience and talent will thrive at UNIQLO.”

Christophe Lemaire said, “In working on the UNIQLO AND LEMAIRE collection, I found UNIQLO’s commitment to product development, high quality, and teamwork truly impressive and inspirational. It is a challenge and a joy for me to be part of the team designing UNIQLO LifeWear - everyday clothing that resonates with people worldwide.”

Christophe Lemaire previously served as artistic director and in similar roles for such renowned global fashion houses as Lacoste and Hermès. Together with Sarah-Linh Tran, he created the UNIQLO and LEMAIRE collection, which debuted in October 2015 and was completed with a Spring/Summer 2016 range that launched in March this year. Fashion industry experts and customers around the world have lauded the line for its excellence.

Uniqlo U logo and concept

Christophe Lemaire with the UNIQLO Paris R&D Center team

About the UNIQLO Paris R&D Center

This facility complements UNIQLO’s other research and design units in Tokyo, Shanghai, New York and Los Angeles. While functioning as product design centers, these units also gather information on local fashion trends, lifestyles, and new materials.

Profile of Christophe Lemaire

1965    Born in France

1991    Established his own brand

2000    Appointed Artistic Director at Lacoste

2007    Opened a boutique in Paris and relaunched his own brand

2011    Appointed Women’s Artistic Director at Hermès

2016    Appointed Artistic Director of UNIQLO Paris R&D Center

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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 1,600 stores in 17 markets worldwide including 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.