Novak Djokovic undoubtedly scored sales points for Uniqlo as a global ambassador that the Japanese apparel brand is enlisting another superstar athlete, football heartthrob Phil Younghusband, to be the Serbian tennis great’s local counterpart.
“Uniqlo clothing is a mix of casual and sports, and Phil fits the image because he is very sporty,” COO Katsumi Kubota said at the brand’s 23rd store opening at SM Marikina. He also expressed his elation over Uniqlo’s performance in the Philippines: “We are very much satisfied. It is exceeding our expectations. We will be expanding in the very near future in the Visayas and Mindanao, maybe in the second-largest city in the country first.”
Uniqlo’s “clothes are made for all, going beyond age, gender, occupation, ethnicity, and all other ways that define people. Our clothes are simple and essential yet universal, so people can freely combine them in their own unique style.” It’s this philosophy that highly appealed to the half-British Phil, who previously preened for Collezione.
“Uniqlo is one of the biggest brands in the world and I’ve been wearing Uniqlo for a couple of years now. The clothes fit my lifestyle. I’m a very active person. I like to go training or coaching or hanging out with my family. I’m very proud and very blessed to be an ambassador of the brand,” the Philippine Azkals and Loyola Meralco Sparks striker said.
At the store opening, Phil wore a light blue pique short-sleeve shirt. “I wear a lot of the polos. This is something I pretty much wear every day. This is one of my favorite items,” he admitted, adding, “I like the jeans, the socks. One thing great about Uniqlo is that they have everything.”
Uniqlo’s massive stocks are dominated by linen shirts for men, women and children for the summer season, though LifeWear, Airism and quirky shirts using artworks from Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Keith Haring and Walt Disney are also in heavy rotation.
As for his summer plans, Phil will be deep in training for his club and the national team for the World Cup qualifiers. “If I get a few days off, I might go to Cebu, Palawan, or just somewhere in the Philippines,” the 27-year-old said. (He actually spent Holy Week in Cebu, swimming with whale sharks in Oslob.) He is also quite busy with a TV show on TV5 with his brother James, called YH Tube, a compilation of sports bloopers from here and abroad.
Uniqlo is also known to collaborate with renowned artists, designers and celebrities, such as Michael Bastian, Ines de la Fressange, Nobuyoshi Araki, Bjorn Copeland of Black Dice, Kim Jones, Peter Saville, Gareth Pugh and Pharell Williams. Would Phil be interested?
“Yeah, if the opportunity comes around, then I’d love to. If it comes to do my own sort of line, that would be very interesting. I’d love it,” he said excitedly. “I would probably do boxers. Boxer briefs.”
Would you model them?
“If they ask me to, yes, of course, I will!”