17 Years After Jil Sander's UNIQLO Collab Predicted the Future, It's Back
In 2009, Jil Sander's UNIQLO partnership was as shocking as Supreme x Louis Vuitton. Not only because Sander was in semi-retirement mode but because, at the time, UNIQLO was an unproven global newcomer in a market flooded with fast-casual clothes. But Sander saw company's potential. When her prescient UNIQLO collaboration returns in 2026, it'll look as much a victory lap as a sign of the times.
No other designer foresaw fashion like Jil Sander. On a macro level, the German designer's luxury label was arguably the first to position "normal" garments as aspirational, pedestaling elevated daily dress while fashion house peers were largely concerned with conspicuous consumption (as if they aren't now).
On a micro level, Sander picked up on singular notions so ahead of their time that it's taken decades to catch up. Consider her collaborative PUMA shoes, which predated the entire designer sneaker market when they released in 1998.
Jil Sander's UNIQLO collaboration was similarly ahead of the curve.
Though UNIQLO had previously partnered with designer labels like Phillip Lim and Opening Ceremony on one-off collaborations, Sander became the first designer to oversee her own dedicated UNIQLO line.
+J, as the collection was known, epitomized Sander's mastery of the capsule wardrobe while aiding in establishing UNIQLO as a "tasteful" but affordable fast-fashion alternative. +J ended in 2011 and briefly returned a decade later, after UNIQLO had fulfilled Sander's prophecy of becoming the very distillation of daily dress. Years later, you can see Sander's influence in every UNIQLO partnership that's followed, from Christophe Lemaire's UNIQLO U to UNIQLO : C, the TikTok-famous imprint overseen by current UNIQLO creative director Clare Waight Keller.
+J returns for another equally brief dance in January, when UNIQLO will "reprint" a handful of key +J pieces that include a funnel-neck down coat, relaxed bomber jacket, and two styles of collared shirt. Nothing exciting at first glimpse, which is exactly the point: Sander's practice posits that the details matter most of all.
The shirts, for instance, are cut from fine-count Supima cotton, an unusually elegant material for an affordable garment, and the water-repelling bomber is cut a tad oversized and accented with tonal grosgrain that subtly softens the militaristic cues.
A UNIQLO representative confirmed to Highsnobiety that the +J reprint collaboration is exclusive to Japan for now. However, most of these special editions tend to migrate overseas in due time and UNIQLO has proven itself keen to reiterate some of its best work, reissuing a handful of fan-favorite items in 2024 for its 40th anniversary.
Either way, it's great timing for a +J revival. Not only is there a growing hunger for the kind of grounded, wearable stuff that Sander pioneered but budget-friendly +J debuted in the middle of a global recession. Its return comes at the head of another. Now, there's a recession indicator.
Highsnobiety has affiliate marketing partnerships, which means we may receive a commission from your purchase. Want to shop the products our editors actually love? Visit HS Shopping for recs on all things fashion, footwear, and beauty.
