Loading
Search
▼ Uniqlo Chairman Yanai Says Dodgers a ‘Turbo Engine’ for North American Business
- Category:Shopping
Major League Baseball’s Los Angeles Dodgers and Japanese fast-fashion retailer Uniqlo have signed a partnership deal that includes the team’s ballpark adding Uniqlo Field to its name.
Tadashi Yanai, chairman and chief executive officer of the retailer’s parent company Fast Retailing Co., told The Yomiuri Shimbun on Wednesday that “the Dodgers are like a turbo engine” for the company to expand business in North America.
Following are excerpts from the interview.
The Yomiuri Shimbun: What was the reason for entering into this partnership deal?
Yanai: The Dodgers always think about what they can do to delight their fans. We need to learn from them in this regard. Uniqlo must become a brand loved by Americans.
Just coming to the stadium is fun at Dodgers games. We want to create that kind of experience in our stores, too.
Q: Will this agreement serve as a driving force for your North American business?
Yanai: The Dodgers are like a turbo engine. If we combine the Dodgers’ strength with ours, it could become two or three times, or perhaps even ten times as powerful.
Q: Will there be positive effects beyond North America?
Yanai: I certainly think so. Los Angeles is the gateway to Latin America and Asia. We will open many great stores in Los Angeles from this point on.
I expect people from Latin America who come to shop here would want to visit our stores back home as well.
Q: Uniqlo places a strong emphasis on social contribution.
Yanai: Companies that cannot contribute to society should not go abroad. Doing things that make money for themselves would make no one in that country happy.
Companies are not welcomed unless they contribute in some way to that society and the world.
Q: Are there any similarities between sports and business?
Yanai: I think sports and business are similar. Both require teamwork, and you must win. You must work hard to win and make the audience want to come back and watch again. In our case, we must think about the customers who come to buy our products.
Q: What is the appeal of the Dodgers?
Yanai: They were the first to sign a black ballplayer in MLB, and that must’ve taken courage. Pitcher Hideo Nomo went to the Dodgers and performed brilliantly despite facing opposition in Japanese professional baseball.
We need people with the courage to break down barriers, and those are the people that the Dodgers have supported.
Q: How do you view Shohei Ohtani?
Yanai: He has the heart, the skills and the physical strength, and he’s smart, too. He has it all. His answers at press conferences are textbook perfect.
Not a single word is wasted, and nothing is left unsaid. Even when he’s struggling, he thinks things through and turns it around. He considers the whole team and demonstrates leadership by figuring out what needs to be done for the team to win.
That’s amazing. A lot can be learned from that attitude. If he were to go into business, I think he’d become a top-tier executive.
Tadashi Yanai, chairman and chief executive officer of the retailer’s parent company Fast Retailing Co., told The Yomiuri Shimbun on Wednesday that “the Dodgers are like a turbo engine” for the company to expand business in North America.
Following are excerpts from the interview.
The Yomiuri Shimbun: What was the reason for entering into this partnership deal?
Yanai: The Dodgers always think about what they can do to delight their fans. We need to learn from them in this regard. Uniqlo must become a brand loved by Americans.
Just coming to the stadium is fun at Dodgers games. We want to create that kind of experience in our stores, too.
Q: Will this agreement serve as a driving force for your North American business?
Yanai: The Dodgers are like a turbo engine. If we combine the Dodgers’ strength with ours, it could become two or three times, or perhaps even ten times as powerful.
Q: Will there be positive effects beyond North America?
Yanai: I certainly think so. Los Angeles is the gateway to Latin America and Asia. We will open many great stores in Los Angeles from this point on.
I expect people from Latin America who come to shop here would want to visit our stores back home as well.
Q: Uniqlo places a strong emphasis on social contribution.
Yanai: Companies that cannot contribute to society should not go abroad. Doing things that make money for themselves would make no one in that country happy.
Companies are not welcomed unless they contribute in some way to that society and the world.
Q: Are there any similarities between sports and business?
Yanai: I think sports and business are similar. Both require teamwork, and you must win. You must work hard to win and make the audience want to come back and watch again. In our case, we must think about the customers who come to buy our products.
Q: What is the appeal of the Dodgers?
Yanai: They were the first to sign a black ballplayer in MLB, and that must’ve taken courage. Pitcher Hideo Nomo went to the Dodgers and performed brilliantly despite facing opposition in Japanese professional baseball.
We need people with the courage to break down barriers, and those are the people that the Dodgers have supported.
Q: How do you view Shohei Ohtani?
Yanai: He has the heart, the skills and the physical strength, and he’s smart, too. He has it all. His answers at press conferences are textbook perfect.
Not a single word is wasted, and nothing is left unsaid. Even when he’s struggling, he thinks things through and turns it around. He considers the whole team and demonstrates leadership by figuring out what needs to be done for the team to win.
That’s amazing. A lot can be learned from that attitude. If he were to go into business, I think he’d become a top-tier executive.
- 28/3 21:00
- Comment (0)
- Trackback(0)