The Shophound

Collaboration Anticipation: UNIQLO's +J Spring Collection Set For Mid-January Launch

Those of you who have been breathlessly waiting for the next installment of UNIQLO's collaboration with the designer Jil Sander, +J, can mark your calendars and begin the countdown. A new installment, the Spring 2010 collection, will be available in the U.S. on Thursday,  January 14^th. This time, the company is planning a regional rollout for the collection , releasing it in Asia just a few days before Christmas on December 23^rd, in the UK on January 7^th and finally in France on the 20^th.
So far, no images have been released, but WWD reports that the collection will include, 'knitwear, jackets, shirts and other items in fabrics such as waterproof ultra-fine cottons, high tech-satins and “sumptuous wools.” The palette will feature white, ivory, pastel hues and “chalked out acids,” the company said.'
Of all the collaborations out there (and they seem to be increasing exponentially) regular readers know that this is one of our very favorites, and if last October's début is anything to go by, the lines will be long to get into the store on the first few days, so get there early.
If you are wondering why New York, London and Paris have to wait so long after the Asian stores, it is probably because the western stores have a separate production with different sizing. Some shoppers have discovered this as the SoHo location recently received replenishments in the smaller Japanese sizes (Check the hangtag. If it's in Japanese, size up.). As for the the fall collections, UNIQLO has begun to mark down a few remaining categories like Men's knits, and there appear to be plenty of coats left for Men and Women.
As for pictures, we'll have them up as soon as we get 'em.
UPDATE:
We have pictures! Here are behind the scenes shots of what looks like model Iselin Steiro and a male model with a sort of bowl cut who we can't quite identify (but surely someone out there can). No word on who's shooting. Anyway, this should satisfy you until the official campaign shots are released. See above and after the jump and thanks to some stellar UNIQLO PR. And here's the price list, which is pretty similar to Fall, and by that we mean extremely affordable.
UNIQLO Spring/Summer 2010 product price range
Outerwear, Coats & Jackets    $49.50 - $149.50
Bottoms                                     $39.50-$59.50
Shirts                                          $39.50
Dresses                                      $49.50-$99.50
Cut & Sewn                              $10.50-$49.50
Knitwear                                   $29.50-$129.50
Uniqlo's +J Spring-Summer Collection Set to Launch (WWD)
UNIQLO +J Official Site

UNIQLO Alert: +J Is Back In Stock With A Surprise Delivery

As if we haven't written enough about UNIQLO this week, we wouldn't want to miss telling you that the SoHo flagship has received a surprise replenishment of the +J collection designed by Jil Sander direct from Japan to satisfy everyone who missed out on the best pieces last month.
The one caveat is that because the goods are from the Japanese stores, they are in smaller Japanese sizes which may be cut slightly differently.
Most people don't realize it, but UNIQLO has different production runs specifically cut for its New York, London and now Paris stores. To make your shopping easier, the store has posted handy size translation charts over the newly replenished +J racks (pictured above), and recommends careful trying on before you buy.
Back in the store are such long gone items as woven shirts for men and women, men's tailored jackets and pants. Many women's separates, knitwear and sold out outerwear pieces for both genders have also returned, so if you weren't quick enough to get what you wanted the first time, here's your second chance (especially if you are on the petite side).
The easiest way to discern the Japanese sized items from the Western ones? Check the hangtags. The Japanese ones will be mostly written in...you guessed it...Japanese!

This Week In UNIQLO:A Heattech Party In Gramercy Park

There was a nip in the air last night which was perfectly appropriate for UNIQLO's party at the top of the Gramercy Park Hotel to continue the ongoing promotion of its HeatTech line. The increasingly popular Japanese retailer (which is very much mass in Asia, but still extremely exclusive in the US and Europe) is serious about making sure everyone knows about their cold weather clothing, and to that end they gave us a closer look at the collection as worn by the four charming models above and provided us with a couple of pieces to try out on our own . The company has a global sales target of 50 million HeatTech units, and we're happy to help them out for a cocktail and a gift bag.
The line has been getting lots of blog attention for its ad campaign featuring 12 of the most in-demand models shot by Mario Testino, but the real news is an expanded collection whose little foil envelopes (which top out at about $15.50 each) are being snatched up in bulk by shoppers at the UNIQLO flagship in SoHo.
Just to mollify the Federal Trade Commission, we'll report that our gift bag included two HeatTech tops ($15.50 each), press releases and a $50 UNIQLO gift card (as if we have ever received a gift bag whose contents we didn't immediately announce to the world).
We write enough about UNIQLO that you would think they paid us (and last night they actually kind of did) but these are not our first pieces of HeatTech, and we can honestly report firsthand that it is immensely effective when those biting February winds rush through the city. The high-tech synthetic fabric is light and whisper thin and uses all sorts of technological innovations to keep you warm without bulk. This year's collection includes new anti-static properties as well as features that help the stretchy garments hold their shapes.
The other new development is UNIQLO's first US online store devoted solely to the line. So far, HeatTech is the only thing currently available for purchase, but we have heard that a long awaited e-commerce site is in the works for those of you who can't make it to SoHo in person.
UNIQLO HeatTech (Official Site)

More HeatTech images after the jump

Return To The Scene: +J Throws UNIQLO For A Loop

We hadn't been back to UNIQLO since Thursday's +J launch, so we quickly stopped in on Monday afternoon (no line) to see what was left.
The good news is there's still plenty of +J left even though the curtained off in-store shop is still teeming with enthusiastic customers and staff continually replenishes the shelves. While things seem relatively under control inside the curtains, just beyond the drapes, however, are more racks and trolleys piled with stock to replenish and discards from the dressing rooms. In short, it's a bit of a mess, but you can hunt through the backstock for your size yourself if you have the patience for rummageing. The lines at the registers remain surprisingly long for a Monday afternoon, and the entire staff seems a bit frazzled, furiously moving goods to the sales floor.
Not only is the Jil Sander designed collection an unqualified hit, but the halo effect on the rest of the store is in full effect with high traffic and the normally well stocked shelves now featuring empty gaps. An entire section of the lower level has been cordoned off and converted into a stock section for new deliveries, but so far, the store hasn't figured out a way to finesse replenishment more smoothly.
So if you think you missed out last week, you can rest assured that this was no blink-and-you've-missed-it H&M-style one-day event. You can now shop more leisurely without all the waiting in line to get in. We can't promise you that every item is still available in your size (or at all), but considering how much stock there appears to be, you have a better than even chance of finding some good stuff at least for the rest of the week.
Previously:
Collaboration Anticipation: UNIQLO's +J Débuts With Controlled Chaos

Friday Spree: Lining Up For UNIQLO All Over The World & Other Stories

Don't worry if you missed out on Yesterday's +J launch at UNIQLO. Sample Sally reports that a new shipment was received overnight, so the curtained off boutique should be replenished by now. Of course, expect the lines to appear throughout the weekend, so we still recommend getting to the store well before its usual 10 AM opening. Here in New York, however, we seem to have had it easy. In Paris (above), where France's first UNIQLO store had its grand opening, lines apparently wrapped around the store all day.
In other news,

• We felt only a little guilty over all the Schadenfreude regarding the potentially imminent financial collapse and demise of CROCS. We still detest them, of course, but you know, bad karma and all. Anyway, it seems that some aesthetically impaired organization (PNC Financial Services Group Inc.) has loaned the company $30 million to get back on its feet (so to speak), so ugly plastic clogs will be with us for the foreseeable future. (The Cut)
• Eco-friendly, socially responsible e-tailer NAU is testing out a layaway program of sorts that will charge you for half the price of selected items at check-out, and then for the other half 30 days later if you haven't returned it. The program runs through October 31^st. (Heard On The Runway/WSJ)
• Thom Browne's long overdue lower priced basics line (that he doesn't want to talk about) gets a thumbs-up after a closer look. (RACKED)
• Isaac Mizrahi has finally opened his first store... because his psychic told him to. Who says designers are flaky? And don't call it a store. It's a shop. (WWD)
• Bloomingdale's Friends & Family runs through this Sunday the 4^th. For online orders use promotion code "BLMFRIEND"
• Ralph Lauren's F&F will run through Ocober 12th, and all you have to do is say "Friends and Family" at checkout for 25% off at any Ralph Lauren store including RRL and Rugby. Exclusions include Purple Label sportswear and Women's Collection. 10% of the proceeds during this period will be donated to cancer charities. Online shoppers can use promotion codes "PINK" to donate to Lauren's Pink Pony women's cancer charity or "RLCCP" to donate to the Ralph Lauren Center for Cancer Care and Prevention.
• ABC Carpet & Home will hold its Warehouse Sale on October 7^th through 12^th in lovely South Hackensack New Jersey at 400 Huyler Street. Closed on Sundays.

Collaboration Anticipation: UNIQLO's +J Débuts With Controlled Chaos

If you were thinking of taking a leisurely jaunt over to UNIQLO today, be prepared. The line currently stretches to Prince Street (and possibly beyond)
Thanks to the delightful folks at UNIQLO for allowing The Shophound a preferred entry to the store where we got the chance to browse in peace and quiet for a few minutes before vigorous shoppers began loading their arms with as much of the new Jil Sander designed +J label as they could carry to the dressing rooms.
UNIQLO's managers are carefully supervising the number of customers they are letting into the store at a time to avoid the sort of mad grabbing and elbow throwing one would encounter at H&M's annual designer collaboration launches. Additionally, they have printed special flyers informing shoppers that they will be permitted to buy only one piece per garment per style, presumably to discourage the sort of mass purchasing that fills eBay with goods within hours. While the huge flagship store could easily accommodate the entirety of the line, the +J collection is artfully encased inside a white pipe-and-drape enclosure, creating an ethereal boutique within the store on the main floor, full of staffers who were diligently attending personally to the early press arrivals. We spotted GQ Editor-in-Chief Jim Nelson making his choices with a personal attendant. A mob scene would have clearly disrupted the mood, so, unfortuately, it will be slow going waiting in line. 
Oh, and the clothes! The production quality looks every bit as pristine and elegant as the samples did in UNIQLO's showroom, which is good news. Fabrics are pretty basic, as we have noted before, so what we have here is classic Sander sportswear as opposed to the more dramatic runway looks or advanced, experimental fabrics the designer is known for. Down items looked particularly appealing including a hooded parka with a dark denim exterior. Stretch cashmere sweaters, among the more expensive items at $149.00, were also especially tempting. If these clothes could speak, however, they would be telling The Shophound to go on a diet, so be warned. It's not that we are morbidly obese, but the sizes run small. Men's trousers, for example, top out at an alarmingly tiny size 34, with a not very large "Large" being the top size available in other items. Hopefully this will change in the future, but we understand that the women's sizes correspond in a similar manner. We made it out of there with a couple of beautiful shirts  for $39.50 each, (in a special +J bag, of course) though we could have been encouraged to buy each one in the line.
What will be left in a few days? Who knows?
Hopefully there will be replenishments coming, but we can't promise anything.
Overall, the collection looks like a ringing success, and totally worth a good bit of tedious line-waiting as long as you are slender of physique —so hipsters have at it!
UNIQLO +J while supplies last at the UNIQLO Flagship, SoHo

More pictures after the jump

T — 1 Day And Counting: UNIQLO's +J Designed By Jil Sander Launches Tomorrow

Just a small reminder that UNIQLO's +J label, the one created by German designer Jil Sander exclusively for the Japanese chain, will be available tomorrow morning, October 1st at 10 AM. The SoHo flagship doors will open at 10 AM so we strongly recommend lining up as early as possible. We don't know how long the stock will last, but it's not likely be too long.
Good luck to all.
UNIQLO +J  546 Broadway between Houston & Prince Streets, SoHo

Collaboration Alert: Kiminori Morishita's KM For UNIQLO Has A Quiet Launch

While we have been preoccupied counting the days until the +J Jil Sander/UNIQLO collection, we barely noticed another exclusive line that quietly appeared at the SoHo flagship this month.
Japanese designer Kiminori Morishita is known for his surplus and uniform inspired colections, and the KM for UNIQLO collection falls squarely in that vein. Those of you (including us us) who are endlessly fascinated with military styles, will find the line currently in residence in the menswear alcove on the first floor. How did we not notice this before? It has been lightly publicized, and there are scant few photos on the store's website, but for everyone who is perpetually searching for the perfect mud-colored henley knit, it should be a mandatory stop on the shopping tour. It's baggy, boxy and very Army/Navy by way of Tokyo. We love it.
UNIQLO (Official Site)

Collaboration Anticipation: More Jil Sander +J For UNIQLO Pictures Surface

We're still hoping to get a look at more of the menswear from Jil Sander's +J collection for UNIQLO, but in the meantime, more of the line's lookbook images have surfaced on UNIQLO's home site where an official +J web page has appeared with specific prices.
Click on Sean and Isabeli above for a slideshow of the newest images of our Official Fall Wardrobe.
UNIQLO +J (Official Site)

In The Showroom: Another UNIQLO +J Preview

We said we couldn't wait to get our hands on the upcoming +J collection designed by Jil Sander for UNIQLO, and last Friday, The Shophound headed down to UNIQLO USA headquarters to see it up close. Since The Cut had already photographed pretty everything, we thought we might take a few detail shots to show you just how beautifully finished the collection is, particularly the women's shirts pictured above. What you can't see is how surprisingly fine the cotton fabrics are in these tops that will sell for a mere $39.50, even with satin piped collars or a full front of tuxedo shirt pleats.
What's also difficult to convey in pictures is what anyone familiar with Jil Sander as a designer will immediately recognize as the distinctive seaming and tailoring techniques that created her signature fit over the years. They will appreciate the familiar center stitching down the back of t-shirts and the sloping seams that form a soft shoulder line as well as pick stitching on linings. In typical Sander form, the individual items don't really make much of impact on the hanger, especially since this line is mostly black and neutral colors, but the secret is in the cut and fit, a quality the designer has skillfully reproduced for UNIQLO.
While the fabrics are humbler than her fans are accustomed to, they certainly didn't look cheap at all, and we were floored to discover that a men's gray flannel jacket and pants will total about $129.00 at retail.
We are looking forward to returning soon to see more of the menswear which was mostly out of the showroom at the time, and you can be sure that we will be posting whatever we find as soon as we see it. Be prepared for the Ocober 1^st launch date. We are anticipating this line will sell out fast.
Previously,
Collaboration Anticipation II: More Jil Sander +J for UNIQLO Images Surface
Behold Jil Sander’s +J Line for Uniqlo (The Cut)