UNIQLO's Name Was Actually A Spelling Mistake Of 2 Words Combined. Now We Can't Unsee That
Hellowelcometouniqlooooo!
By Tamara Jayne
The comfort. The clean, minimalist look. There's so much to love about UNIQLO.
The Japanese casual wear retailer was founded in 1949 in Ube, Yamaguchi. And it now has over 1,000 stores globally, including in countries like the Netherlands, Philippines, Indonesia, Sweden, Spain, Italy, and of course, Malaysia.
Prior to UNIQLO's establishment, the company's predecessor was a men's tailoring business called Ogori Shoji.
After decades of growth, the owner's son and current UNIQLO founder, Tadashi Yanai, decided to diversify its product range into casual wear.
That's when UNIQLO was born.
But what many might not know is that its name – 'UNIQLO' – actually came about because of... a spelling mistake
The company originally called itself 'Unique Clothing Warehouse' to fit the business concept. By joining the first two words together, it became 'Uni-Clo'.
However, according to Culture Trip, a staff made a mistake in 1988.
During the brand's registration process, someone misread the letter 'C' as a 'Q' and that's how the name came about
It eventually stuck and the brand's name was changed to UNIQLO.
But that clearly didn't affect the store in any way, as they had opened 100 stores in Japan a decade after its launch.
So although the name was an accident, it still contributes to its unique branding and success that UNIQLO has today.
The opening of the first Unique Clothing Warehouse on 2 June 1984, in Hiroshima, Japan
Image via Uniqlo/South China Morning PostIn just the span of two decades, UNIQLO is now in 25 different countries across Asia, Europe, and the US, with 800 outlets in Japan alone
To date, UNIQLO's founder Yanai, who is also the chief operating officer of retail group Fast Retailing, is one of the richest men in Japan. According to Forbes, he has an estimated net worth of over USD30.7 billion (RM128.6 billion).
