GU Is Uniqlo’s Sister Brand — & It’s Finally Available In The US (2024)

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Photo: Courtesy of GU.

Since 2006, Uniqlo’s sister fashion brand GU (pronounced as letters “g” and “u” and derived from the Japanese character for “freedom”) has been a shopping fixture in Japan thanks to its affordable range of on-trend styles and almost 450 stores. And while the label — part of Fast Retailing Group, which also owns Theory and Helmut Lang — previously had a stateside pop-up, today GU opened a flagship in New York and launched a US commerce site. This marks GU’s first permanent store outside of Asia and the first step in a global expansion that could make the brand as ubiquitous as its popular sister label.

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According to GU CEO Osamu Yunoki, the brand took the insights gained from the US market following the 2022 New York pop-up to the product development team. The brand then spent two years adjusting its original sizing, changing silhouettes and fits, and making the styling and merchandising more gender-fluid, to align with the feedback. “Our [pop-up] products have been based on Japanese consumers. We changed our sizing and styling, and we opened a product development headquarters in New York,” Yunoki says of the preparation leading up to the brand’s American launch.

While Uniqlo has made a name for itself for its high-quality basics and designer collaborations — and most recently, headlines for the appointment of Chloé and Givenchy alum, Clare Waight Keller, as the brand’s creative director — GU caters to a younger, more budget-conscious consumer who’s looking to engage with current trends that still fit under the everyday style umbrella. The brand’s signature items range from a barrel-leg jean ($39.90) to a pleated skort ($29.90) and a puffy shoulder bag ($39.90) that could be a younger cousin to Uniqlo’s viral crossbody.

“Uniqlo and GU have the same concept and a different concept,” says Yunoki. “Both are trying to offer as good of a product as possible at an affordable price… [But] while Uniqlo offers high-quality, high-function basics, GU offers more trendy fashion.” But rather than put out the largest assortment of products, GU focuses on curating a limited selection of pieces that are meant to be mixed and matched and styled in a variety of ways. This is a concept that the brand refers to as “MINI edit MAX.”

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“MINI edit MAX delivers maximum style and quality with minimum prices and curated collections. We intentionally narrow down the number of items,” Yunoki says. (In addition to offering a more digestible selection to the shopper, a limited lineup, according to Yunoku, also allows for a more effective supply chain model, which ensures a lower price point.)

This type of versatile selection is what according to Yunoki has made GU one of Japan’s most popular brands. “GU is very practical. People are really busy — they have no time to think about fashion all the time — and aren’t spending as much money as before on fashion,” he says.

In addition to the barrel-leg bottoms, which come in denim and pant versions, and cargo pants, which were a popular item during the pop-up’s run, the US selection includes on-trend pieces like pleated midi skirts, cropped blazers, and bubble-hem skirts. These are mixed in with more seasonless essentials like colorful cardigans, workwear-appropriate blouses, and transitional-weather trench coats — all, similar to Uniqlo, available in several different colors.

To mark the launch of the e-commerce site and store opening, GU also dropped its newest designer collaboration today, with the Japanese brand Undercover, with whom GU previously partnered on collections. Boasting 22 styles, the special-edition collection includes statement outerwear, track pants, and accessories that marked previous collaborations and features US exclusives like “Big Apple” graphic T-shirts and ripstop tote bags.

While GU will continue to innovate and create products with a global audience in mind, Yunoki points to the mission that inspired the brand name as the driving force of the launch 18 years later: “I would like to have US customers enjoy the freedom to find a new U [sic] through our fashion.”

Shop GU.

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GU Is Uniqlo’s Sister Brand — & It’s Finally Available In The US (2024)

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