Uniqlo, Grameen Bank to set up social biz JV in Bangladesh

TOKYO, July 13 Kyodo -
Fast Retailing Co., operator of the Uniqlo clothing chain, said Tuesday it has
agreed with the Grameen Bank Group of Bangladesh to set up a joint venture,
hoping to ease poverty and other social problems in the country through job
creation and with affordable clothes.
Under the agreement, Fast Retailing will set up a wholly owned subsidiary in
Dhaka around September, and the new subsidiary and Grameen Healthcare Trust of
the Bangladesh Bank Group will set up another company the following month, also
in the Bangladeshi city, to make and sell clothes in one of the world's poorest
countries.
The joint venture, tentatively named Grameen Uniqlo Ltd., will be capitalized
at around $100,000, and will be 99 percent owned by the new Fast Retailing
subsidiary with Grameen Healthcare holding the remaining 1 percent.
Fast Retailing said the joint company will use microfinance specialist Grameen
Bank's borrower network of 8 million people to help those living in poverty to
develop job skills and offer employment opportunities. It plans to generate 250
jobs in the first year and increase the number to 1,500 within three years.
''A company cannot survive unless it is truly a good company for the country
where it is located,'' Fast Retailing Chairman and President Tadashi Yanai said
at a press conference. ''Bangladesh has the possibility to become a big
market.''
Muhammad Yunus, the head of Grameen Bank, said at the same press conference
that he expects the project to solve the problem of many Bangladeshis suffering
from cold temperatures without decent clothing, thanks to Uniqlo's business
expertise.
The joint company will also aim to offer affordable clothes with a price tag of
around $1 each for local people while maintaining product quality.
==Kyodo