Grameen Uniqlo closes ahead of schedule
Grameen Uniqlo has closed all outlets in Bangladesh ahead of its 18 June scheduled shutdown, citing unavailability of stocks.
"We regret to inform you that all our stores must close permanently on 30 May due to stock unavailability," reads the notice posted by the brand on its official website.
"Though we previously announced stores would close on 18 June, we experienced overwhelming support over our clearance sale campaign. All stocks at all stores have now been sold out, ahead of our previously announced date," it said.
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Earlier on 10 May, the clothing brand announced that it would wind down its business in Bangladesh by 18 May.
Japanese Fast Retailing Company Limited established Uniqlo Social Business Bangladesh Ltd in 2010 in partnership with the Grameen Bank Group's Grameen Healthcare Trust.
In a joint venture, they launched "Grameen Uniqlo" in August 2011 with the aim of responding to social issues such as poverty, health and education in Bangladesh.
Uniqlo is a well-known brand of the Japanese multinational Fast Retailing Company.
Around a decade ago in 2012, Grameen Uniqlo started selling sanitary products at $1 to poor rural women.
After that, contributing more to Bangladesh's economy and society, Grameen Uniqlo expanded its social business from April 2012 to June 2013, and developed a business framework different from the traditional ones.
The company initially operated in the rural areas, but later they started selling products in Dhaka through various creative distribution systems like shops set up in vans and minibuses to understand what the customers needed.
After 2013, Grameen Uniqlo set up 18 outlets in the capital due to the increasing demand for their products.
