Uniqlo Details Return to Downtown SF

Japanese fast-fashion chain Uniqlo will open a store on Market Street in downtown San Francisco on Oct. 9, marking the return of a major fashion brand to the city’s core, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The new store is at 801 Market St., in a site formerly occupied by Old Navy, and it’s just two blocks away from the company’s Powell Street flagship that shuttered in 2021 amid the pandemic.

“San Francisco has always been an important market for us, and we’re fortunate to have built such a loyal customer base across the Bay Area,” Fuminori Adachi, CEO of Uniqlo USA, told the Chronicle. “We’ve closely followed the city’s evolution over the years, and as downtown continues to build on its momentum and recovery, we see tremendous opportunity ahead.”

Uniqlo’s return to the Powell Street area comes as numerous retailers, many of them Asian, have entered the blocks around Union Square, the newspaper reports, including Nintendo, Labubu maker Pop Mart and clothing brand BAPE. However, the immediate block surrounding the new Uniqlo location continues to grapple with major challenges, including the shuttered San Francisco Centre mall, which is in the process of being sold.

Despite that, Adachi expressed confidence in the city’s resurgence.

“Market Street felt like the right place for our return — it’s convenient for people who live and work in the city, as well as those visiting, and gives us the space to bring the full UNIQLO experience back to the heart of San Francisco. We’re excited to reconnect with the community and be part of downtown’s next chapter,” Adachi told the Chronicle.

Uniqlo’s new store will have 20,315 square feet of space at Fourth and Market streets, and will feature the company’s everyday clothing lines, branded as LifeWear; its custom apparel printing service Utme; and its repair and upcycling studio, RE.Uniqlo.

The opening confirms a news release the Yamaguchi, Japan-based company put out early this year detailing its planned U.S. store openings this year. In addition to the SF site, the chain opened a new store in Washington, D.C, plans openings later this fall in New York, Miami Beach and Houston, followed next year by two Texas stores, in Austin and San Antonio.