Japans Fast Retailing, the owner of global clothing chain Uniqlo, said on Thursday it would open its first discount brand GU store in the United States this autumn. The store will open in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City in what will be the brands debut outside of the Asian market, Fast Retailing said in a statement. The company has opened about 450 GU outlets since 2006, mostly in Japan. Fast Retailing is planning an aggressive growth strategy across North America, a market that has become increasingly important as sales in China suffer from ongoing COVID-19 lockdowns.