Mix & match
Keeping it basic at Uniqlo
Good morning, trend trailblazers. This is your Stock Market Rundown for April 18th, 2024. Thanks for joining me. Let’s dig in:
TODAY’S TOP STORY: RETAIL REINVENTION
If you live in the US and haven’t heard of the Japanese “fast fashion” retailer Uniqlo, get ready to hear a lot more.
The company will soon open its first stores in Texas, and expand in California, on its way to a targeted 200 stores in North America over the next few years—up from 74 today.
Uniqlo got started in 1984, when founder Tadashi Yanai opened a shop in Hiroshima, Japan as a sales outlet for his family retail conglomerate. Its name, “Unique Clothing Warehouse”, later got abbreviated to “Uniqlo”.
The brand became a favourite among Asian consumers for its affordable basics—think t-shirts, jeans, and lightweight down jackets. And they’re a hit in the world’s second-biggest consumer market, China, where the brand has 922 stores.
Uniqlo’s most recent quarterly results posted a double-digit profit boost thanks to shoppers snapping up its cardigans and chinos across Asia and India. The retailer’s explosive growth has garnered the founder a $26 billion fortune, making him Japan’s richest man.
So what’s the daily life of a fast-fashion billionaire like? Yanai owns two golf courses in Maui, and spends weeks there golfing in summer. (Apparently, the 75-year-old Yanai starts work at 7 AM so he can be home by 4 PM to practice his putting. )
But while his pastimes may be elite, his outfits aren’t—Yanai’s typical attire is a $15 wool sweater from his own store. I’m guessing he doesn’t wait for them to go on sale.
SO WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
Heavy metal is making a comeback: industry experts say global steel demand will rise in 2024.
The brainiacs at Goldman Sachs expect China’s economy to grow 5% in 2024. That’s what happens when you build thousands of kilometers of six-lane highways between gigantic cities no American has heard of.
With Bitcoin prices spiking, European regulators are fretting that a handful of exchanges control nearly all crypto trading. Well, we could go back to holding crypto on physical drives, but those seemed to have an awkward habit of ending up in landfills.
Planning a “bucket list” trip this summer? You’re not alone: Delta Air Lines expects record revenue thanks to surging demand for travel. Flight attendants will be racking up overtime.
That’s it for today, homeslices; let’s circle back first thing tomorrow morning. Yours in capitalism, The Axe
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