Miniso Laos opens first store at Vientiane

Chinese fashion and novelty retailer Miniso has opened its first store in Laos as it continues its rapid Asian expansion.

The Miniso Laos store is located on the 1st floor of KL’lar Huk K’kee Mall in Vientiane, the nation’s capital.

The flagship store in Laos gained much attention from the local government, five major banks in Laos installed ATMs at the store.

First day turnover exceeded RMB 50,000 (US$7500).

“For a developing country with a population of 6 million people, this was a miraculous sales record,” a Miniso spokesman said in a statement.

Phouphet Khamphounvong, Laotian Minister of Finance, and his wife, Miyake Jyunya, (pictured) global co-founder of Miniso, Ye Guofu, global co-founder of Miniso, Laotian representatives of business cooperation, officiated at the opening.

Queues formed to be first to try the Japanese-styled store which sells own-brand fast fashion accessories, electronics, homewares and beauty products.

Since its establishment in 2013, Miniso has opened more than 1400 stores across the globe. In 2015, its annual sales exceeded RMB 5 billion ($750 million), which it claims makes it the fastest-growing brand in offline retailing.

This year, Miniso plans to open another 1800 stores globally, and to double its annual turnover.