Shibuya was home to Zara’s first store in Asia. The store opened in Tokyo in August 1998, marking Zara’s first entry into the Japanese market and its early expansion into Asia.
The opening was part of Zara’s international growth after its first store outside Spain opened in Porto, Portugal, in 1988. Zara entered Japan through a joint venture with the Japanese company Bigi, giving the Spanish retailer a local partner as it learned the market.
Shibuya was a fitting launch location: the district was already one of Tokyo’s best-known fashion and youth-culture centers. The store is sometimes confused with Harajuku or Ginza, other prominent shopping areas, but the first Japanese Zara was specifically in Shibuya.
Zara later expanded across Japan and other Asian markets, including Singapore, China, South Korea and Indonesia. Its Japanese debut helped establish the wider international retail strategy that made the brand a global fast-fashion chain.