If you live in Tokyo, it’s hard not to stay on top of the latest fashion buzz…
Ranking alongside Paris, Milan, London and New York, Tokyo is one of the world’s most fashionable cities. Japanese consumers, who are quick to snatch up the latest brand name goods and must-have items, largely fuel the second largest economy on the planet.
In a country defined by the phrase ‘customer is king,’ Japan is a shopper’s paradise where flashes of cash are the preferred means of demonstrating your wealth and power. With that said, the question on everyone’s mind is whether or not the Japanese will have to tighten their belts and check their spending habits, especially considering that their economy is heading towards recession.
While brandaholics might have to curb their lust for designer shoes and handbags, the latest trend in the world of Japanese fashion is Hennes & Mauritz, the Swedish retailer that is better known in North America and Europe as H&M.
Yup. That cheap-but-chic and wear-it-then-toss-it fashion giant we’ve all come to know and love has finally arrived in Japan. But, in a land where US$100 T-shirts and US$300 jeans are the norm rather than the exception, will H&M be a hit amongst fickle Japanese consumers?
Three weeks ago, the Swedish retailer H&M opened their first Japanese store in the perennially hip and fashionable Tokyo shopping district of Ginza. While H&M is regarded as the world’s third-largest retailer by sales, their newest Tokyo branch is the first location in the Land of the Rising Sun.
Located down the street from other foreign fashion houses such as Zara and Gap, H&M is hoping to tap into the lucrative Japanese consumer market. Following an intense advertising campaign, the Ginza store opened to packed crowds, which may help facilitate the proposed expansion of H&M across Japan in the years to come.
To date, H&M has become a powerful and profitable force in the global apparel market. With more than 1,600 stores in over 30 different countries, the secret to H&M is simply offering fashionable clothes at incredibly cheap prices. By manufacturing clothing under its own label, H&M has been successful in closely following global fashion trends, and in keeping prices low by cutting out the middleman.
At their Japanese flagship store in Ginza, customers were snatching up skirts and jeans and dresses and shirts, yet saving thousands and thousands of yen on the latest Tokyo street fashions. However, consumers didn’t seem to mind sacrificing quality for cost, especially since prices in Japan are inflating, salaries are stagnating and the economy is heading towards shambles.
Eventually, the Japanese may soon have to face the fact that they can’t afford the brand names they’ve grown accustomed to wearing. In the meantime however, H&M is hoping that they’re hip enough to capture and keep the interest of Japan’s elite fashionistas.
At this point, I certainly don’t know whether or not H&M will carve out a niche in the consumer paradise that is Japan. However, I do know that I’ve finally found a clothing store here in Tokyo where I can buy a decent pair of jeans and a stylish shirt without denting the wallet and maxing out the credit card.
** All images are trademarked by H&M, and are reprinted here for the purposes of critical commentary **