Fast Retailing, parent of Uniqlo apparel stores, says it will continue seeking growth in China – but focus on smaller cities.

Uniqlo has opened 316 stores in more than 70 cities across China, but more than 100 of those are in tier one cities Shanghai, Beijing, Guangdong and Shenzhen. More than half of those stores were opened in the 2013 and 2014 fiscal years.

Now Fast Retailing will open more shops in tier two, three and even tier four cities, seeing China as a key market in its plan to become the world’s largest apparel retailer by 2020. It plans to add 200 stores this fiscal year, to boost its China profits by 34 per cent.

Uniqlo Greater China CEO Pan Ning told Want China Times it plans strategic alliances with developer Wanda Group to open Uniqlo stores inside Wanda department stores across the nation.