News comes this morning that Boston is finally getting its long-awaited Uniqlo stores. Rumors have been bubbling for a while, and the company had stated that the Boston area was one of their expansion targets for 2014.
But the arrival will play out a bit differently than I would have expected. A pop-up location will open in Quincy Market in July and remain open through September. Meanwhile, permanent stores will open in the malls in Natick and Chestnut Hill at the end of August. (Info about the Chestnut Hill location leaked several months back.)
Then in September a third store will open in the Northshore Mall, followed by one at Legacy Place in Dedham in October. Boston proper won't get stores until a year from now, when two will open: one on Newbury Street and one in Quincy Market.
The suburbs-first approach is surprising, but I imagine it's mainly due to the availability of suitable spaces and the time involved in getting them ready. (The future location on Newbury, roughly across the street from Newbury Comics, used to be a parking garage.)
Regardless, I welcome the imminent opportunity to shop at Uniqlo without having to buy online or travel to New York. Their inexpensive clothing is well above that of other "fast fashion" retailers in terms of quality, and its colorful styles are still conservative enough that adults can wear them without embarrassment.
I consider this bad news. They are notorious for sweatshops and "slave-like" labor. I know it's complicated, and I'm guilty of near-total negligence in this area, but I want to start thinking more carefully about what I buy, who made it and how, and where the profit is going. While it's too hard to buy "Made in USA" most of the time, I can avoid buying cheap clothing in cheap stores, at least. I'm shopping more at Boden these days, which belongs to the Ethical Trading Initiative.
ReplyDeleteIt's true, plenty of companies are guilty of not doing enough to improve the working conditions of those that make the merchandise they sell. I've probably talked about Uniqlo more than I've actually made purchases from them, but it's just one company among many. You may want to check out The Blue Pages, a directory of companies rated by their politics and practices.
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