Fast Fashion

Be Cheap! –the latest fashion trend in Japan-

So, the country of Japan has been suffering from an economic slump over the past few months and it is making it harder for people to open up their wallets and pay their money for something. Especially for girls in Japan who want to remain fashionable, not being able to spend so much money on cute clothes is a pain!! That is why for such girls, several brands have stood up to save the girls in Japan from having to give up the joy of shopping and being fashionable. This is what started the trend of “Fast Fashion” in Japan!



What’s fast fashion? Simply saying, it is type of managing by clothing brands which works to provide the leading fashion trend in a reasonable price. Usually, when girls want to purchase the newest shape of some clothing, you had to pay quite a lot. However the expanding fast fashion brands have brought back the smiles to the girls. Here are some of the popular brands who are fighting to grab the girls’ attentions!

Forever 21 - This is a California-based clothing brand that is popular all over the world! Although it has existed since the 1980's, it did not launch its store in Japan until this year. It was in April 2009 that Forever 21 opened its first store in Japan in Harajuku, one of the central districts for fashion in Japan. Ever since its opening, there has never been a day where the shop is not crowded with young Japanese girls.

H&M - This is a Sweden-based clothing brand that is popular mainly in Europe. This brand is launched its first store in Ginza in September 2009, and the second branch opened in Harajuku in November of the same year. It will not be too much to say that the trend of fast fashion started from this brand. When the store first opened, the number of customers allowed to enter was restricted! The popularity of H&M still remains and launching of more stores in Japan is presently under review.

UNIQLO - You can never talk about fast fashion without mentioning UNIQLO! This is the most popular domestic fast fashion brand in Japan. Before its popularity burst, UNIQLO mainly offered simple clothes for cheap prices and its image stayed that way. However, as the fast fashion trend began to expand, UNIQLO began using popular celebrities to its TV commercials and began collaborating with top models and fashion designers from all over the world and made a drastic change. Today, UNIQLO is considered as one of the most important fast fashion brands that people in Japan can pop into anytime and anywhere unlike the other foreign brands.

When visiting Japan, looking through these stores and feeling what the Japanese girls are crazy about may be an interesting experience.