Fast Retailing has set up a denim innovation center in Los Angeles, a city well-known as the home of denim. The center aims to bring together specialists in jeans development from premium denim brand J Brand and other Fast Retailing Group companies to develop jeans utilizing innovative technologies and materials, based on established tradition of jeans. The first project for the facility will be research on jeans for Uniqlo and J Brand. Products for both brands developed at the center will be available from the fall-winter 2017 season.
The denim innovation center is Fast Retailing’s first facility to focus on research and development of denim fabric. It will enable Fast Retailing to quickly incorporate the essence of current trends in its designs. Focusing on fabric, fit, and finish, the key elements in making jeans, the center will develop fabrics with the world’s leading fabric makers as well as conduct R&D on the latest production technologies to make jeans that look exceptional and are comfortable to wear.
The center can also be used by contracted producers as a research center, which will increase the integrity of the finished product during actual production. In addition, the facility will focus on environmentally friendly processing and production methods, conducting R&D on chemicals and techniques used for fading and distressing of jeans.
