United Arrows

United Arrows is a Japanese fashion label and clothing company based out of Tokyo. The company has grown since its inception in 1989 to include a wide array of brands and international connections with products being sold in department stores and Unites Arrows stores around the globe.

History

United Arrows was founded in October of 1989 in Shibuya, Tokyo. In that same year, the company opened its first shop in Shibuya and started a working partnership with Marina de Bourbon, a popular French boutique.

In the coming years, United Arrows would open multiple shops throughout Japan, including the Harajuku shop in Shibuya that would become the flagship store for the company and the location of its corporate office. In 1996, the first W-Shock, UA LABO shop was opened as a test marketing store for new products in Harajuku.

The Green Label relaxing brand was launched in 1998, followed by the United Arrows CYT shop in 1999, designed to target younger, more casual shoppers. Chrome Hearts was added to the United Arrows family of brands in December of 1999 as well. These newer brands have grown in size and helped United Arrows only further expand its reach in the Japanese clothing market.

The brand only continued to grow as it reached the first page of the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 2002 and started opening between 4 and 10 new stores every month in 2005 and 2006. The company has now grown to include more than a dozen different brands and stores throughout Japan and has started to build its appeal in other countries, developing an overseas demand for its products and leading to potential new stores in international markets. Multiple partnerships have developed as well in this time with multinational clothing brands and department stores in both Europe and North America.

Clothing Style

The United Arrows clothing style varies greatly between each of its brands, but generally tries to offer boutique style fashion at a reasonable price. The companies self titled brand has long been known for its use of soft silhouettes and balance in clothing that is traditionally not viewed as such. For example, the shorts produced by United Arrows are both rounder and more balanced than traditional shorts, giving a nicer appearance to the legs and making it more comfortable to have legs exposed.

Styles that were at one time casual have been redesigned by United Arrows in many cases to reflect a differing perspective in their customer base and the fashion world, with tailored, professional looks for things like shorts, t-shirts, and vests that would normally be considered solely casual wear. To date, the United Arrows company has brands that cover all spectrums of the domestic clothing market, including youth, men, women, and wide array of both casual streetwear and mature European influenced designs.

External Links

• Official Website (Japanese)