Tadashi Yanai
Profile
Performance in office
Tenure
Tenure
Background
He is the eldest son of the founder, Hitoshi Yanai. In 1972, after graduating from Waseda University and working at JUSCO for nine months, he returned to Ube and joined the family business, Ogori Shoji. He became Representative Director and President in September 1984. He had substantial shareholding behind him: in the FY ended August 1994 he was the largest shareholder with 31.31%, and four family members held 54.8%. He still held 26.68% in the FY ended August 2005.
Selection
In September 1984 he took over the presidency from his father, Hitoshi Yanai. Workforce cuts at Ube Industries and the spread of cars had drained customers from the shopping street in front of the station, and the company's merchandise was limited to menswear. In June of that year, before he took office, the original menswear business was spun off as OS Hanbai, and the Uniqlo Fukuromachi store opened in Fukuromachi, Naka Ward, Hiroshima, moving the company into casual wear retailing.
Initiatives
In 1988 he set up a purchasing office in Hong Kong and began sourcing by ordering directly from sewing factories in China and Vietnam. The company listed on the Hiroshima Stock Exchange in July 1994 and accelerated openings to 50 stores a year. By 1995, in-house planned products made up 80% of sales, and the company adopted weekly price changes to sell through its stock. In 1998 it replaced centralized headquarters control with store-level management, and the Harajuku store opened that November sold 8 million fleeces that winter alone. He stepped back to Chairman in November 2002 and returned as President in September 2005.
Career
Career
Fast Retailing (Uniqlo)
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| Aug 1972 | Joined |
| Sep 1972 | Director |
| Sep 1984 | Representative Director, President |
| Nov 2002 | Representative Director, Chairman |
| Nov 2002 | Stepped down as President |
| Sep 2005 | Representative Director, Chairman and President |