Fast Retailing’s Uniqlo has announced a global initiative to donate a million new items of its Heattech thermal clothing to people in need this winter.

Dubbed ‘The Heart of LifeWear’, the company said it originated with it considering the question ‘What makes life better?’ and “asking how, in its 40th anniversary year, the brand could take further concrete action to contribute to society through LifeWear”.

The company has already made a major donation in Moldova to Ukrainian refugees. Other examples of its donation will include half a million items distributed through UNHCR to forcibly displaced people in Jordan this winter. Then there will be 100,000 items in Japan for Victims of the Noto Peninsula earthquake and torrential rains, and to child and family services facilities. In North America, 80,000 items will go to refugees, people experiencing homelessness, adults and children living in poverty.

In parallel, the UK will work with local partners to distribute a total of 10,000 items also supporting refugees, people living in poverty and the homeless. It’s working with Social Bite, Goods for Good, Crisis Liverpool, Crisis London and New Horizon in Britain.

Koji Yanai, senior group executive officer at Fast Retailing Co, said: “All over the world, every day there are people whose situation suddenly changes regardless of their intentions or will – due to conflict, persecution, or natural disasters. No one wants to become a refugee, or to find themselves suddenly living in precarious circumstances.

“Through our new global initiative… Uniqlo seeks to make a positive impact on the lives of as many people as we can who are living in such situations, aiming to help make life better and more comfortable — even just a little — for people in need around the world.” 

Currently, there are more than 120 million refugees and internally-displaced people globally, as well as many others who are forced to live in difficult circumstances, both in markets where Uniqlo operates and in nearby regions. 

The company’s aim is to “help make life a little more comfortable for people forced to flee, children in need, victims of natural disasters, and other vulnerable people around the world”. 

Along with Heattech thermal items, it will also donate breathable, lightweight AIRism clothing, depending on the climate of the recipient region.

And it will be assisted by Global Brand Ambassadors and materials manufacturer Toray Group, which jointly developed Heattech. Ambassadors include Roger Federer, Kei Nishikori, Shingo Kunieda, Gordon Reid, Ayumu Hirano, and Adam Scott.