The Japanese clothing group Fast Retailing Co. Ltd. was also able to grow strongly in the 2022/23 financial year. This was particularly due to the strong development of the Uniqlo retail chain outside the home market. The group is now targeting another double-digit increase in sales for the current year.
According to the annual report published on Thursday, Fast Retailing generated consolidated sales of almost 2.77 trillion Japanese yen (17.5 billion euros) in the financial year that ended at the end of August, significantly exceeding its own forecast. Compared to the previous year, revenue increased by 20.2 percent and reached a new record level in the company’s history.
In Europe, Uniqlo achieved the highest increase in sales
The growth engine was the Uniqlo International segment, which achieved a sales increase of 28.5 percent to 1.44 trillion Japanese yen and thus contributed more than half of the group’s sales for the first time in the company’s history. The textile chain achieved the highest rates of increase in Europe, where sales increased by 49.1 percent to 27.3 billion Japanese yen. In North America, sales rose by 43.7 percent to 163.9 billion Japanese yen, and Uniqlo also achieved above-average growth in South Korea, Southeast Asia, India and Australia.
In Greater China, the most important foreign market, demand has recovered in recent months after being hit by the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic in the first half of the year. Ultimately, annual sales there amounted to 620.2 billion Japanese yen, exceeding the previous year’s level by 15.2 percent.
Growth in the domestic market was more restrained. The Uniqlo Japan division increased its sales by 9.9 percent to 890.4 billion Japanese yen.
The smaller group brands contributed to the group’s increase in sales with double-digit increases. The GU label achieved an increase of 20.0 percent to 295.2 billion Japanese yen, in the Global Brands area with brands such as Theory, Princesse Tam Tam and Comptoir des Cotonniers, sales totaled 141.6 billion Japanese yen. This meant they were 15.0 percent above the previous year’s level.
The group is also forecasting strong growth for the current year
The strong sales growth also boosted the consolidated result. Operating profit increased by 28.2 percent to 381.1 billion Japanese yen. The bottom line was a net result attributable to shareholders of 296.2 billion Japanese yen (1.9 billion euros), an increase of 8.4 percent compared to the previous financial year.
The clothing provider is now targeting further growth for 2023/24. Group sales are expected to increase by 10.2 percent to 3.05 trillion Japanese yen. The forecast for operating profit is an improvement of 18.1 percent to 450.0 billion Japanese yen, the target for the annual net profit attributable to shareholders is 310.0 billion Japanese yen, an increase of 4.6 percent would mean the previous year.