Tadashi Yanai
Tadashi Yanai
Tadashi Yanaiis a Japanese businessman, the founder and president of Fast Retailing, of which Uniqlois a subsidiary. He is routinely ranked as one of the richest men in Japan, and in January 2014 was ranked 35th richest in the world according to Bloomberg, making him the richest man in Japan with an estimated net worth of US$19.9 billion in 2009 and US$17.6 billion in 2014...
NationalityJapanese
ProfessionBusinessman
Date of Birth7 February 1949
CountryJapan
japan outside stores
Opening new stores outside of Japan is important, but training our employees is even more important.
air blended common english generation older versus younger
The air of the English is down-to-earth. They care about details; there's a tradition, but there's also a counter-culture: the younger generation versus the older generation and so on. But then that's well blended into a happy balance and crystallised into common sense.
change critical demand government hands political power
As a businessperson, I don't have the power to change the government. That is in the hands of the political leaders. However, as a taxpayer, we have the right to be critical of the government and demand change.
came francisco gate great people san took weeks welcoming
Forty-five years ago, when I was 18, I came to San Francisco by boat and took two weeks to get here. I had a great impression. I think San Francisco is the welcoming gate for people from Asia.
admire amazing build discount employees late policy rare retail sam store strategies success value valuing
Wal-Mart is an amazing success story. What I particularly admire very much about the late Sam Walton was his policy of valuing his employees. Giving value to employees is very rare in the retail industry. I also admire the strategies Walton used to build up his discount store concept.
became brand casual centers home major market paris stores success wear
Our international success started out first because we became the No. 1 casual wear brand in our home market of Japan. Then, we set up stores in the world's major fashion centers of New York, Paris and London.
asia japanese maybe nearly opportunity
Japan has only 100m people. Asia has 4bn. At least one-third, maybe nearly half, will become middle class, and this is a big opportunity for Japanese businessmen.
admire asian believe brand global next success
The Asian brand, which I admire for having become a global success, is Samsung. In comparison, we're just starting, but I believe that we at Uniqlo will be the next Asian brand to do well globally.
japan problem cowardice
Japan's biggest problems are conservatism and cowardice.
country america offers
America, for me, is the country where, if you have something great to offer, you'll be valued highly.
people stores
I learned that people dont buy anything from unknown stores.
teenager entrepreneur visionaries
Konosuke Matsushita was a visionary entrepreneur. He started working very young as a teenager, and he eventually created Panasonic to become a truly global company.
hands government leader
As a businessperson, I dont have the power to change the government. That is in the hands of the political leaders. However, as a taxpayer, we have the right to be critical of the government and demand change.
hate different i-hate
I hate politics. What they say and what they do is completely different.