Uniqlo founder donates $31M to UCLA program

By Dat Nguyen October 4, 2024 | 09:44 pm PT

Tadashi Yanai, president and CEO of Fast Retailing. Photo courtesy of the company

Japan’s richest person Tadashi Yanai, founder of the Uniqlo clothing brand, has donated $31 million to a program at the University of California, Los Angeles.

This is the highest amount that the Division of Humanities has received to date, surpassing the previous record that Yanai set himself in 2020 when he gave the school $25 million, the school announced Thursday.

"Yanai’s new gift will substantially advance the study of Japanese humanities, solidify UCLA’s position as a leading center for such scholarship and contribute greatly to our global reach and impact," said UCLA Interim Chancellor Darnell Hunt.

The majority of the fund will go to the Japan Past & Present project, which is centered around a web-based hub that is meant to transform the field of Japanese humanities by promoting easy and equitable access to research and teaching resources.

"I am proud to support the study of Japanese humanities at UCLA and around the world because I believe in sharing and valuing the practices and artforms that shape our world," Yanai said.

Yanai, 75, is the president and CEO of Fast Retailing, the parent company of Uniqlo. He is Japan’s richest person with a net worth of $48.3 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.