(Photo : Uniqlo Flagship Store)

Uniqlo Co., a Japanese casual wear designer, manufacturer and retailer, seems undisturbed by the ongoing territorial disputes between China and Japan as it announced the opening of its Shanghai flagship store, its biggest flagship store in the world, by the end of this month.

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Aside from the flagship store, Uniqlo also plans to further expand in China by opening 80 to 100 new stores annually in addition to the existing 212 outlets it owns in over 50 Chinese cities. The Shanghai flagship store will be opened on September 30, reliable sources said.

According to Pan Ning, the global senior executive vice president of Fast Retailing Company, Uniqlo's parent company, the Shanghai flagship store will occupy an area of 8,000 square meters. That means the Shanghai store is even bigger than Uniqlo's flagship store in Tokyo, New York, and Paris.

Store To Introduce Fast Retailing Brands

The Uniqlo flagship store in Shanghai will be situated at a standalone building in Huaihai Road, Shanghai's business district. It will be housed in a building at the site of a former department store, occupying the first five floors and a basement level, report said.

Aside from clothes bearing the Uniqlo brand, the Shanghai flagship store will also introduce to the Chinese market for the first time Fast Retailing's four other apparel brands. Pan said the Fast Retailing brands will have their special zone in the flagship store.

Uniqlo aims to further expand in China by surpassing the number of stores owned by competitors like Zara and H&M.

Fast Retailing Plans Hong Kong Exchange Listing

The opening of the Shanghai flagship store was announced just a week after it was reported that Fast Retailing, the parent company of Uniqlo, is planning to list in Hong Kong early next year in order to widen its investor base for its global expansion. 

Fast Retail, based in Yamaguchi, Japan, is led by Japanese billionaire Tadashi Yanai. The company aims to increase outlets in China, the world's second largest economy, to 3,000 by opening about 100 stores a year.