Uniqlo and GU continue to drive Fast Retailing but Theory still weak

Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing released its Q1 results on Thursday and said its business profit jumped, leading it to increase its outlook.

That came as Chinese sales picked up — hugely important given that’s the Japanese giant’s largest market —  and other global markets also proved buoyant, helping counter the impact of US tariffs.

The company continued to open new stores around the world during Q1, particularly in Europe. And seemingly undaunted by the tariffs issue, it has plans for a series of flagships in key US cities too. 

In fact, its CFO said it beat its profit margin expectation despite absorbing tariff costs.

So what were the numbers? Fast Retailing said business profit climbed 31% to ¥205.6 billion (€1.1bn/£975m/$1.3bn) as revenue jumped almost 15% ¥1.0277 trillion and net profit rose 11.7% to ¥147.4 billion.

Uniqlo performed strongly in all regions, reporting revenue and profit gains across the board. “High-quality store openings and strategic information dissemination contributed considerably to our branding,” it said. “We also improved the organisation of inter-season business, enabling Fall products and year-round products to drive sales during that period”.

Looking at its operating units in detail, Uniqlo Japan saw revenue up 12.2% at ¥299 billion with business profit up 20.2% at ¥62.4 billion. Same-store sales expanded 11%, with sales of Fall products and year-round products proving especially strong, as mentioned. But the gross profit margin contracted slightly on the rise in the cost of sales caused by a weakening in yen forward contract rates. 

Uniqlo International saw revenue up 20.3% at ¥603.8 billion and business profit up 38% at ¥117.3. The business profit margin rose following improvements in gross profit margins and its strong performance “was driven by the successful development and marketing of products that captured customer demand, as well as the continued opening of high-quality stores worldwide”.

The Greater China markets reported an increase in revenue and double-digit profit growth while the business in South Korea, Southeast Asia, Australia, India region, Europe, and North America all generated double-digit revenue and profit growth.

At the youth-focused GU brand meanwhile, revenue only edged up by 0.8% to ¥91.3 billion but business profit jumped 20% to ¥11.4 billion.

Same-store sales fell slightly year on year. While soft sheer T-shirts, warm casual innerwear, and some other products sold well, overall sales “failed to gain momentum due to a lack of sufficient products that captured mass fashion trends”. But the gross profit margin still improved due to fewer product shortages and improved discounting rates.

At its Global Brands operation, the picture was less rosy. Revenue fell 7.6% to ¥33 billion and operating profit dived 14.8% to ¥1.7 billion.

Revenue and profit from the Theory label declined due to “lacklustre sales” from the business in the US. But PLST performed better, reporting “higher year-on-year revenue and profit”, although the company didn’t give any numbers here. It also said the combined Comptoir des Cotonniers and Princesse tam.tam business “reported a decline in revenue but also a contraction in overall losses”.

As mentioned, the group raised its guidance for the whole of FY26, saying it expects consolidated revenue of ¥3.8 trillion (up 11.7%), consolidated business profit of ¥650 billion (up 17.9%), and net profit up 3.9% at ¥450 billion, all higher than previously predicted.