Job ads spark Uniqlo Vietnam speculation

Japanese fast-fashion retailer Uniqlo has held a recruiting event in Vietnam, hinting at a pending launch in the country.

Zara launched in Vietnam last year and H&M will open its first store in Ho Chi Minh City this month. Uniqlo, which has openly stated its ambition to become the world’s largest apparel retailer, inevitably follows the two European rivals into new markets.  

Local online news resource Zing has even cited an unidentified “inner source” saying Fast Retailing will open its first Uniqlo Vietnam store in Ho Chi Minh City in fall, which means around the third quarter of 2017.

An online advertisement in English encouraged people to apply for a “production manager candidate”. The text was ambiguous enough to be interpreted as a factory role, however by defining “The person will be engaged in all important matters related to products such as production management, R&D, merchandising, etc” it suggests a potential in-store role, or local management support role, given merchandising is an in-store discipline, unrelated to production. Uniqlo sources products from Vietnam.

Uniqlo job ads

Furthermore, for just one role, the company held two full-day recruitment programs – one in Hanoi and one in Ho Chi Minh City.

Other positions had closed earlier.

While Uniqlo has not commented on the reports or on its Vietnam plans, the fact the company appears to have set up a representative office there is a clear indication the market is on its near-term agenda.

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