CONTRIBUTED BY KAHO
UNIQLO already made a post on our blog a while back. The post is "go, uniqlo, go!" I'm writing about it as well, because it's a fun store to write about!
I like UNIQLO for different reasons.
1. Reasonable prices
2. Simple and stylish designs
3. Comfortable
4. Good sales
UNIQLO is like Old Navy. The place I can afford to buy my clothes! Usually I go to UNIQLO to look for T-shirts, jeans, khaki pants, sweat shirts, or work clothes. They also have cheap belts. I just got a thin bronze color belt only for 1,280 yen.
Try to go to UNIQLO on weekends since they usually have a weekend special sale.
Their strength is T-shirts, which they sell from spring to fall. UNIQLO does special collaboration project with designers and comic book artists. Check out their UT site where you can see many cool designer T-shirts. Each T-shirt costs 1,500 yen. They have special pricing for T-shirts. The more you buy, the cheaper they get. If you buy two at once, the price for each becomes 1,400 yen and if you buy three, each is 1,300 yen. Pretty smart. Last year I got "Popeye" T-shirts which I love. This year there are T-shirts with "Astro Boy" cartoon designs.
I recommend their umbrellas, too. They have simple umbrellas for 500 yen! Can't beat that price.
In summer time, they sell yukata, summer casual kimono that many women like to wear to go to the summer festivals or fireworks festivals during summer. I'm thinking about getting a new yukata this year. They usually have a package that comes with an obi and the price I saw last year was good deal.
There are five locations of UNIQLO on the main island of Okinawa.
Two of them are in the area accessible to most people who live near U.S. bases. One is in Gushikawa JUSCO and the other is in the shopping center in Ginowan.
Directions to UNIQLO in Ginowan
From Lester: Take 58 south. After passing stop light at Gate 1 for Foster, stay on the right lane. Highway 58 splits into regular one and bypass one. You will need to take a bypass one which is the direction of "Convention Center". You will drive pass a big shopping center on your right and immediately after this shopping center is a stop light. At this stop light, you will see the sign of UNIQLO ahead of you. There is a black cat delivery services company warehouse with a black cat painted on the door on the right side at this stop light. Turn left here. The entry way for the shopping center parking lot is behind the store.
There is a 100 Yen Store like Super Target in this shopping center. Needless to say, I love going to this shopping center. I have yet tried the shoe store next to the 100 yen store. (Too much time is spent in UNIQLO and 100 Yen Store!) I wonder if their shoes are any good. The prices looked pretty good.
Being in more of a shopping mood, I just checked out the Uniqlo site and the one pieces with the bras sewn in easily give Victoria’s secret a run for their money! Thanks for this great post, Kaho!
Soooo… I haven’t been to this store yet, but I like what I’ve seen so far. But my question is, do they sell women’s sizes? Or do you pretty much have to be a single-digit to shop there? I don’t want to go just to see cute stuff that I have no hope of fitting into. I need XL-equivalent clothing. I’m not opposed to buying men’s shirts for myself, if I can at least find some of those that fit.
Tara — EXACTLY my question — thanks for asking!
Don’t forget to mention the free alterations – especially if you are vertically challenged like me (5’3″). I bought a couple pairs of jeans there recently – The salesperson hemmed them for me in the dressing room, I paid for them at the counter and they were ready for me in 15 minutes!! Fabulous for a pair of cute $40 pair jeans. I’m still trying to figure out the sizing – jeans went by waist size (i.e. 27, 28…), but I was stumped a few weeks ago with a pair of dress pants which appeared to be in a totally different size range (40??). I bought them and even took them in to my Japanese teacher to have her read the washing/care instructions – I don’t need a dry clean only pair of pants with a toddler in the house! My teacher said the warm wash cycle and line dry would be best since American dryers are much stronger than the Japanese style.
FREE ALTERATIONS?!! Woo hoo! I’m just under 4’11″. Impossible to find my inseam.
In terms of sizes, you just have to go see. They have cool T-shirts that are unisex. UNIQLO is definitely worth checking out. The store also has 500 yen umbrellas, nice purses, towels, etc.
After searching for about an hour up and down 58 for the shopping center, I gave up and went to Jusco. I am really new (10 days) to the island and definitely don’t claim to know my way around, but I could not find this place to save my LIFE yesterday!! I noticed today that all the posts are about 2 years old…IS there still a UNIQLO in Ginowan at this same location??? The 100 Yen shop is what I was really looking for because I needed crayons and such for my son to start preschool.
There is one in the Gushikawa JUSCO just off the 85.
Sarah-
It is actually on the 58 Bypass, of course not marked! Just past the commissary gate of camp Foster on 58 ( heading towards Naha, so Foster will be on your left) there will be a turn off to your right, I believe there is a sign mentioning the convention center. Take that right hand turn at the light. If you pass the end of Foster you have gone too far. The 100 yen store is still there. You will pass the shopping center on your right but the median will prevent you from entering so go to the next opening in the median and make a u turn, it will then be on our left. Good luck.
you can also turn off the by-pass at the light just before the shopping plaza and onto this little alley-like street. There will be an entrance to the shopping plaza on your left. There is a long turn lane and you might see the San-A shopping plaza through the trees. I think it is the 3rd light after you turn onto the bypass.