Foreign brands landing on our shores have given Malaysian fashion enthusiasts a lot to rejoice about.

In recent years, Malaysia has welcomed many foreign brands. Most recently, Uniqlo, Japan’s number one fashion brand, announced that it will open its first store here later this year!

The store will occupy a three-level space at the brand new Fahrenheit 88 mall (formerly KL Plaza) at Jalan Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur.

Many people were thrilled at the news because fans of the brand have had to, until now, make their purchases in Singapore, the nearest country to ours that carries Uniqlo.

Famous for their great variety of casual wear and high quality items at an affordable price, the store will offer customers a great variety of basic wear, their signature items such as the Japanese high-tech winter wear, Japanese denim, and the more corporate-styled +J collection (a collaboration with German designer Jil Sander).

The Uniqlo UT store in Harajuku, Tokyo.

In the past decade or so, we have seen many foreign highstreet brands like Mango (or MNG in Malaysia), Zara, GAP, Topshop, Warehouse and Forever 21.

Having these brands at our doorsteps may not only reduce our need to travel abroad merely for shopping, but will also give fashion lovers nationwide a chance to change up their looks and add some variety to their wardrobes, especially for those who don’t travel often.

It’s also a blessing that these brands are affordable to the Malaysian pocket, especially since there are great deals in these stores during sales periods and they often hold fantastic warehouse sales.

Variety is the spice of life, especially when it comes to dressing up – every brand brings something different to the table, and as far as style is concerned, there’s plenty for us to choose from in stores.

Of course, we shouldn’t ignore our local brands and independent designers, but having brands from all over the world never hurts.

Cotton On made its debut in Malaysia last year, and I do hope to someday see more Australian brands make their way to our stores, including Forever New, Supré, Sportsgirl and ValleyGirl.

Walking into these stores in the land Down Under always give me a great easy-breezy feeling, as if the world was one huge beach and we are all sunbathers sipping fruity drinks on a warm day with the breeze blowing in our faces.

On the European front, there’s the Swedish H&M, what I like to call the “pretty” store thanks to their variety of accessories, dresses, skirts and blouses. They also have a pretty good selection for guys, including some real witty and quirky T-shirts.

Recently, Malaysia has been blessed with many awesome brands like Topshop

There’s comfort in knowing that to find variety, you don’t have to break your bank with high-end purchases or even leave the comfort of your own country. All you have to do is get in a car, endure traffic jams and find parking!

Now, if they could only open stand-alone boutiques for Steve Madden, River Island, NewLook, American Apparel … okay, I’m getting carried away!