Meet the grad running his own UNIQLO London store within a year of leaving uni

Trips to Japan and Christmas parties at Café de Paris

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The word ‘grad job’ often inspires thoughts of making cups of tea, fetching lunch for high-up people and doing boring, junior work for next to no pay. But what if your grad job offered you the chance to reach a senior level and lead a huge team of people within a year?

We spoke to Nabil, a graduate working for UNIQLO UK, about the perks and responsibilities that come from running his own store straight out of uni.


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Nabil Chowdhury, Business graduate, Rotterdam School of Management

How did you get the job at UNIQLO?

I’d just finished studying Business in the Netherlands when I came across UNIQLO’s graduate scheme. Coming from a business-based degree, the opportunity to qualify at a managerial level at such a young age is what attracted me to it. I received full training for the first few months, and within a year I was promoted to Store Manager.

What’s your role?

I’m currently managing UNIQLO’s Wandsworth store in London. I lead a team of nearly 20 employees which involves training and nurturing their talent, as well as designing the store’s layout and presentation. I’ll also recruit new employees and act as the representative for the store overall. Having this much responsibility so early on, I really feel integral to the store’s future success. There’s never a dull moment.


Could you be a CEO one day? UNIQLO’s Manager Candidate Programme offers you the chance to take your career as far as you want – apply today if you’re up to the challenge


Nabil in Japan (Home to UNIQLO HQ)

What’re the best bits about working for UNIQLO?

First off, you get a 30 per cent discount on all products and your everyday travel is paid – which saves you tonnes when you’re living in London. There’s also huge scope to travel for work; even once I qualified as Store Manager, I went to Japan for UNIQLO’s international conference and was congratulated onstage by the owner of the company. In future, I plan on going to work in Brussels, my hometown.

We’re also treated to big celebrations; for our last Christmas party, the company rented out Café de Paris for the whole of UNIQLO UK with dinner and free drinks. There were hundreds of people there, with no expense spared.

What’s the culture like?

It’s definitely a place where they have faith in their employees. From the off, they introduce you to the heads of the business. I was interviewed by both the COO of UNIQLO UK and Germany and the CEO of UNIQLO Europe during my application process. There’s no hierarchy and you can consult anyone no matter how high up they are. The head office is a really open space.

UNIQLO is also really diverse. It attracts people from all over the world and it’s extremely inclusive. The focus is on your individual assets more than anything else.

Are there opportunities to branch out as you go on?

At UNIQLO, your progress is all dependent on how much you put in – there are promotion opportunities every six months. There’s the chance to go into IT, HR, Finance, Merchandising, and loads more. It’s an easy transition as you cover all sides of the business as Store Manager.


UNIQLO are looking for resilient, hard-working and organised students to embark on their Manager Candidate Programme – apply today and start discovering your potential 


What advice would you give to grads looking to apply to UNIQLO?

You’ve got to be willing to exceed expectations and grow very fast. More than anything, UNIQLO want people who are able to manage their time properly. The ability to juggle a lot of things at once is invaluable here. 

When I’m hiring I’ll look for someone with proven leadership experience – this doesn’t have to be a job, they could have managed a club night or some other creative venture. There’s a space for anyone in UNIQLO, as long as they’re determined to put in their all. 


If you’ve got the drive to succeed, UNIQLO have the graduate scheme for you – apply today to their Manager Candidate Programme and discover where your hard work could take you