Japanese apparel retailer UNIQLO is accelerating its expansion in India, as the market emerges as a key growth driver for the brand’s global ambitions, according to Kenji Inoue, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of UNIQLO India.
The retailer recently launched a 17,000 sq.ft. store at Phoenix Mall of Asia in Bengaluru, nearly twice the size of the outlet it opened at Orion Mall in the city last year. Inoue said the Orion Mall store had recorded the highest opening-day sales of any UNIQLO outlet in India, performing roughly double the company’s internal projections. The strong performance had given the brand confidence to both expand its store network and increase the size of its retail formats in the market.
Despite the rapid expansion, the company is pursuing a measured growth strategy. Inoue said the retailer was not focused on aggressive store rollouts, but rather on disciplined expansion centred on quality locations and customer experience.
Six years after entering India in 2019, UNIQLO’s local business has expanded rapidly. Inoue said the company has recorded a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 60% since launch, while maintaining strong yearly growth. He added that the brand is currently growing at around 44% year-on-year, driven by strong performance at existing stores as well as rapid growth in e-commerce.
According to Inoue, the company’s online sales are expanding at a pace similar to its brick-and-mortar operations, with its e-commerce business recording a CAGR of around 140%.
However, UNIQLO remains cautious about entering emerging digital retail formats such as quick commerce. Inoue said the company currently prefers to prioritise its own e-commerce platform in order to maintain a direct relationship with customers and ensure a consistent service experience. He noted that the company continues to monitor developments in the quick-commerce space and may evaluate participation in the future if the channel matures further.
UNIQLO currently operates stores across several key Indian cities, including New Delhi NCR, Chandigarh, Lucknow, Mumbai, Pune and Bengaluru. Despite this footprint, Inoue said the brand’s presence in the country remains relatively small compared with the overall size of the market, indicating significant room for expansion.
Financial performance in India has also strengthened. In FY ’25, UNIQLO India crossed Rs. 1,100 crore (US $ 120 million) in revenue, registering a 44% year-on-year increase, while profit after tax more than doubled to Rs. 178.4 crore (US $ 19.46 million), translating into a 15% PAT margin.
Inoue said India has the potential to become one of UNIQLO’s top ten global markets, noting that the sales growth recorded in the country ranks among the strongest across the company’s global operations.
Globally, UNIQLO’s parent company Fast Retailing reported consolidated revenue of US $ 22.8 billion for the twelve months ended 31st August 2025, marking a 9.6% year-on-year increase. Inoue said the group aims to reach US $ 60 billion in annual sales over the medium term, roughly three times its current scale, and expects India to contribute to that growth trajectory.
However, he acknowledged that product localisation and demand forecasting remain key challenges for the brand as it expands in newer markets such as Mumbai, Pune and Bengaluru. Inoue said accurately identifying the right product mix — including seasonal demand, colours and sizes — is critical to avoiding stock shortages and ensuring consistent customer service.
At the same time, UNIQLO is focusing on building greater awareness of its core product innovations among Indian consumers. Inoue said the company is placing greater emphasis on product marketing to communicate the technical features and differentiation of its apparel ranges.
Certain categories have already seen strong traction in the market. Inoue noted that the brand’s HEATTECH range has been well received even in warmer cities such as Mumbai and Bengaluru, where sales during certain months have exceeded those in Delhi. He added that linen apparel is another category experiencing particularly strong demand in the Indian market.
