Cate Blanchett Helps Uniqlo Launch Literary Magazine 'Stories She Tells'

Cate Blanchett is helping Uniqlo, the Japanese casual clothing brand owned by Fast Retailing, launch its first literary magazine. The magazine is called Stories She Tells, and its first issue is scheduled for autumn 2027, according to WWD.

The magazine will publish essays about women's experiences and points of view told through storytelling. Blanchett chairs the selection committee that picks the essays. Those essays will be chosen through an open call, meaning writers from outside the project can submit work for consideration.

The inaugural issue will be themed "Connection." The theme centres on links between people, shared experience, and the way each person's story fits into society. Alongside the essays, the magazine plans to include academic research papers and literary works on the same theme.

Selected contributors will receive support for their writing and access to mentorship. The project is launching through a partnership with the University of Tokyo, and its organisers aim to extend it to universities around the world. The stated goal is to bring together diverse voices across genders and generations.

Uniqlo describes Stories She Tells as a global initiative to elevate women's writing, and it includes a cultural programme featuring professional writers, according to the project's page on the Uniqlo website. The company lists Blanchett as a co-creator of the project.

Blanchett's link to the brand goes back to 2025. Fast Retailing's annual report says she joined Uniqlo as its newest brand ambassador in August 2025, a role in which a public figure appears in a company's advertising and promotion. She is an Academy Award and Golden Globe winner, and she serves as a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN refugee agency, UNHCR. In 2026, Fast Retailing announced her UNHCR role in a company sustainability news item.

Uniqlo's LifeWear magazine, the brand's own print and online publication, has also featured her. Its segment titled "Hello, Cate" includes an interview in which she wore pieces from the UNIQLO : C Fall/Winter 2025 collection, a line the brand makes with outside designers.

The magazine's first issue is still about a year away. Writers interested in the open call will need to watch for the terms set out by the project's organisers.