Uniqlo founder will soon resign

Tadashi Yanai opened the very first Uniqlo store in Hiroshima in 1984 and still runs parent company Fast Retailing as its CEO, but he has now announced he will step down soon when he turns 70.

New CEO from the current board

He will not step down immediately: only in 2019 will he pass on the reins to someone younger, someone who is able to adapt more quickly to the evolving market. He will however still stay on as the board’s chairman. Yanai already divulged the new CEO will be chosen from the current board of directors, meaning one of more than forty directors – two of which are Yanai’s own children – will become the company’s new CEO.

It is not the first time Yanai announced his retirement: he said he would step down in 2013, when he turned 65, but when the time came, he decided to stay on.

Uniqlo experienced an excellent fiscal year: turnover grew 4.2 % to 1.86 trillion yen (14 billion euro) and profit skyrocketed 148 % to 119 billion yen (9 million euro), mainly thanks to cost-cutting measures.