Japanese clothing giant Fast Retailing – the parent company of Uniqlo –  has opened a new automated warehouse in the Netherlands to streamline its distribution in Europe, reports Nikkei Asia.

The 110,000sqm Rotterdam facility costs an estimated US$69.2 million and brings together operations that were previously scattered across several sites. It is one of the company’s largest warehouses globally, similar in size to its US facility launched in 2021.

Designed to support physical store distribution across the region, the facility will serve as a central hub for apparel shipped from Asia and delivered by land to stores across Europe.

However, the company clarified that it will not handle e-commerce orders.

Rotterdam’s port – the largest in Europe – offers broad access to Fast Retailing’s retail network, including 28 Uniqlo stores in France, 20 in the UK, and 10 in Germany, as well as other locations across the continent.

The company says it is expanding its presence in the region and reported a 36 per cent increase in regional sales last year, reaching US$1.7 billion. It’s targeting around $3.45 billion in European sales by 2027, with a longer-term goal of S$6.9 billion.