Japan’s leading apparel company Uniqlo’s delegation called on Vice-Chancellor Prof. Sudhir Kumar Jain on Thursday. Uniqlo is the largest brand of Fast Retailing Co. Ltd., a major retail group in Japan. Banaras Hindu University has signed an MoU with Fast Retailing which paves the way for learning and internship avenues for students of the university. The delegation comprised Noriaki Koyama, Group Executive Vice President, Fast Retailing, Shinichi Hashimoto, Director, HR & General Administration, Uniqlo, and Mayank Shukla, Principal Strategist, Fast Retailing. The two sides discussed ways to take the bilateral engagement of BHU and Fast Retailing forward, including scholarships for students and management training workshops.

 Vice-Chancellor Prof. Sudhir Kumar Jain expressed happiness that the MoU has resulted in many students of BHU acquiring internships and professional experience with Uniqlo. He commended the efforts of the Uniqlo team to help nurture talents at BHU. Prof. Jain also wished success to Shreyas Jaiswal, a student of the Institute of Management Studies, who was selected under the Global Management Program as part of MoU, and is currently working with Uniqlo in Japan.

Noriaki Koyama, Group Executive Vice President, Fast Retailing, said the company was excited to partner with one of the iconic and leading universities in India and would like to continue the collaboration in order to mutually benefit both sides.

Mayank Shukla, Principal Strategist, Fast Retailing, said the Global Management Program has been a great success, and nearly 100 BHU students have applied for the program this year. He said the company conducts a series of programs with various universities across the globe and similar activities could be beneficial for BHU students as well. He informed that Uniqlo representatives will soon be visiting BHU for internship selections.

The Global Management Program offers students a unique opportunity to have business sessions with global market specialists in order to learn more about world industry and business. Besides, as part of the Japanese Business Culture Program, selected undergraduate and postgraduate BHU students are exposed to UNIQLO business model, Japanese culture, language, and society. Uniqlo India and Tokyo University of Foreign Studies also conducted a two-day Japanese Business and Cultural Program at BHU on February 7-8, 2024.