UNIQLO International has kicked off its FY2021 on a positive note as operating profit of the brand’s international stores (outside Japan) increased amidst declining revenues in Q1 (September-November period).

The revenue fell to 260.6 billion yen (down 7.20 per cent), while operating profit surged to 41.4 billion yen in Q1 of FY 2021, noting 9.50 per cent increase from the same period of FY 2020 – thanks to strong revenues and profit gain from UNIQLO Greater China as strong performances in Mainland China and Taiwan were registered.

There was also a shift from an operating loss to an operating gain at UNIQLO South Korea on Y-o-Y basis, as reported by Fast Retailing which is the parent company of UNIQLO.

As far as Greater China is concerned, the same-store sales increased on the back of strong sales of warm clothing and products that fulfilled stay-at-home customer needs.

“Mainland China’s gross profit margin improved as we pushed ahead with our new strategy of controlling discounting, focusing on appealing product value and strengthening branding,” said Fast Retailing.

UNIQLO S/SE Asia & Oceania reported sharp declines in both revenue and profit after the region was hit especially hard by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. However, Vietnam reported higher-than-expected results after successfully managing to control COVID-19 infections.

On the other hand, North America reported a large decline in revenue and an operating loss, and Europe reported significant falls in both revenue and profit.

While UNIQLO Europe was tracking a recovery and recording sales on a par till October ’20, the temporary closure of all stores in the UK, France, Belgium and Italy in November ’20 resulted in a considerable decline in both revenue and profit for the first quarter as a whole.