>> we are ready to begin. welcome to unico i'm albert and i'm very pleased that today we have a number of distinguished guests joining us from the ribbon cutting ceremony, so allow me now a few moments to introduce our guests first of all please welcome san francisco mayor mr. edwin lee. [ applause ] >> >> next please welcome singer,

song writer and unico cast member, quopola. [ applause ] >> we also would like to welcome the director of the san francisco zoo, miss tania peterson. >> and now, ladies and gentlemen, let's please welcome unico, ceo mr. tabashi yani. [ applause ] >> and last, but not least, please welcome unico usa chief operating officer, mr. pani... [ applause ] >> at this time, i would like to ask unico ceo, mr. yani to give us a few opening remarks. >> mr. yani please. >> good morning, everyone. yeah, i am now so much excited

because of for the opening soon and also i would like to express my personal experience 45 years ago i was 18 years. i passed 15 this usa, in san francisco, is my past experience to around here. and also, i much say, i am a 49er. [ cheers ] >> because i was born 49 year, and also, for each century, do you know, today, today is a

day, you know, today is steve jobs passed away, one year ago. i give steve jobs so much and this is a place of innovation, i try to make innovation here for us today. thank you very much for listening. thank you. [ applause ] >> thank you, very much. >> may i now ask mayor lee for a response, please? >> thank you. and mr. yuni thank you and welcome to san francisco, welcome unico for to the square it is a great place to be, this 30,000-square foot flag ship for the west coast and i have been wanting to tell you that i have known about your store to my daughter for quite some

time, who have been religiously shopping for their affordable and very well-designed clothing for quite some time, and of course, i'm very intrigued being the next model to follow joe montana. but, i'm happy to be here and joined with, of course, tania peterson our zoo director and so many friends. i also had to wake up to my wife saying, we are going to the store today, are we not? so she is there already, we are already focused on the orange section of the store to get ready for this weekend. but i want to not only congratulate unico for locating here in our very exciting part of our city, the international part where so many millions of visitors come every year. in fact, last year in 2011,

over 16.3 million visitors came to san francisco and most of them found their way to unit square to the best shopping in the world. this is the center for arts and culture and of course it is our innovation capitol of the world and we are doing all of the right things to continue our success in the city. part of that success, is to work with great corporate citizens like unico and their efforts to make sure that they give their best effort to hire san franciscoans. today we celebrate not just a flag ship store but a store that has made corporate responsibility at the helm of their friend. there is over 500 people that they have already hired in this store. that is a fabulous contribution. they have worked that magic with our office of economic development, having spent weeks to train people who may not have gotten this opportunity.

but for their out reach in this store, and then, they created a buzz and excitement in our city. i know that people will not only appreciate the fabulous fashions here, that you just look at these prices, for the kind of quality that they have. and i know that we have smart shoppers like supervisor kim who will be here in a minute and others who look for that casmere brand and also are very affected by the price sensitivity of the quality store. and then i want to just give a shout out. there are people so excited here in san francisco for this store to open. paul english from the richmond area of san francisco was here at 5:00 a.m. and i have to give a shout out to her. she and her friend michelle were the first two people in line here. i want to welcome you to the flag ship store in san

francisco. congratulations mr. yuni and kenny, thank you for your wonderful work in setting this up and working with us so well. >> thank you, very much. yeah, you are very, very good serviceman, and the whole san francisco. thank you. thank you very much. >> and i think that we are, yes? >> by the way, when you get in there, you have got to see the magic mirror, that is something that is going to blend technology with your fashion. mr. yuni on behalf of the city in a way in which we are so proud, so thankful for this opportunity to welcome the flag ship here, we would like to declare this unico day here in san francisco. [ applause ]

>> thank you, very much. mayor lee and thank you very much everyone. i think that we are ready now to spread the unico ribbon for the ribbon-cutting ceremony, yes? if we could have, here we go, just underneath, yes, please. yes, i think that everyone has, yes, thank you very much. so, ladies and gentlemen, we are going to do it on the count of three. we will go, 3, 2, 1 for our guests and for our executives, obviously we have a number of very interested photographers here so please give us your best unico smile possible. ladies and gentlemen, so if we are ready, 3, 2, 1, all right? >> 3, 2, 1... [ cheers ] >> thank you very much, everyone. and i think that we will be

opening in probably... >> yes? >> we will be opening very, very shortly. one moment please. i'm derek, i'm hyungry, and ready to eat. these vendors offer a variety

of the streets near you. these mobile restaurants are serving up original, creative and unusual combinations. you can grab something simple like a grilled cheese sandwich or something unique like curry. we areher here in the average eight -- upper haight. you will be competing in the quick buy food challenge. an appetizer and if you are the winner you will get the title of the quitck bite "chompion." i am here with matt cohen,

from off the grid. >> we assembled trucks and put them into a really unique heurban settings. >> what inspired you to start off the grid? >> i was helping people lodge mobile food trucks. the work asking for what can we get -- part together? we started our first location and then from there we expanded locations. >> why do think food trucks have grown? >> i have gotten popular because the high cost of starting a brick and mortar or strong, the rise of social media, trucks can be easily located, and food trucks to offer a unique outdoor experience that is not easily replaced by any of their setting any worlwhere else in san franc.

san francisco eaters are interested in cuisine. there adventuress. the fact theyuse grea use great ingredients and make gourmet food makes unpopular. >> i have been dying to have these. >> i have had that roach coach experience. it is great they're making food they can trust. >> have you decided? >> we are in the thick of the competition? >> my game was thrown off because they pulled out of my

first appetizer choice. >> how we going to crush clear? >> it will be easy. probably everyone has tried, something bacon tell us delicious. >> -- people tell us is delicious. >> hopefully you think the same thing. >> hopefully i am going to win. we're in the financial district. there is a food truck right there. every day changes. it is easy and fun to go down. these are going to be really good. >> how are you going to dominate? >> i think he does not know what he is doing. >> i was thinking of doing [unintelligible] we are underrepresented. >> i was singing of starting an

irish pub. that was my idea. >> one our biggest is the corned beef and cabbage. we are asking people what they're thinking in getting some feedback. >> for a lot of people i am sure this combination looks very wrong. it might not sound right on paper but when you taste it to or have it in your mouth, it is a variety. this is one of the best ways in creating community. people gather around and talk about it and get to know different cultures. that brings people together and i hope more off the grid style and people can mingle and interact and remove all our differences and work on our similarities. this creates opportunity. >> the time has come and i am very hungry.

what have you got? >> i got this from on the go, a sandwich, and a caramel cupcake. i went with home cooking. what de think? >> i will have another bite. >> sounds good. >> that was fantastic. let's start with you. >> i had the fried mac and cheese, and twinkies. i wanted to get something kind of classic with a twist on it. >> it was crispy. >> i will admit.

>> want to try fieried mac and cheese? >> was that the best twinkie? >> would you say you had the winning male? >> definitely. >> no. >> you are the "chompion." clair has won. you are the first "chompion." >> they know it iwas me because i got a free meal. and check a map on -- check them out on facebook. take a peek at the stuff we have

cut. to get our -- check out our blog. i will have >> a great man, is that what you called me? she has to be reminded. -- would you tell that to anita? i congratulate you and thank you for coming to san francisco.

hopefully you also become a disaster --- we would be glad te to open up our minds and communities to receive ideas from across the country, if not the world as to how we can improve it. it never is about what just san francisco is doing. a lot of our ideas are homegrown. the ideas are transplanted and that is the greatness of our city. we're an international city. we want to show what ideas are coming out of the far east, china, malaysia, the philippines, singapore as well as all over from europe. perhaps from africa and south america. we can learn from that just as

we have done with concepts like sunday streets where people take back the streets and start having fun in our urban communities and bringing out the children to enjoy the environment. this is our future generations so we have to have the best ideas. how to keep our environment and our strong. i want to tell you that there are a tremendous amount of enthusiasm for keeping our city grain trade we have at least three different projects that we have been focused on for a number of years. i have had the privilege with working with mohammed and our city engineers to accomplish this. most importantly with our community leaders and volunteers throughout every part of our neighborhoods. i hope that you do you is your time and take advantage of our wonderful weather to go out and

do as many doors as possible of all the -- tours as possible of all the community gardens. we have a committee challenge program, one that i am proud to have headed up when we were at public works but also the city administrator. this program today funds almost $900,000 this year in programs that are all committee pushed. it is attacks checkoff for corporations and individuals. the fund this through the tax system to provide almost $1 million every year and is put into a community-driven process where community leaders will apply on behalf of themselves or their own streets or gardens and they can get grants of up to $100,000 or as small as $5,000.

they could be groups that have never done anything except to start talking to each other about how to increase their neighborhoods's interest in reading and the environment. we have associated ourselves with the parks alliance and the clean city coalition to provide administrative support to any group that forms. as well as those groups that have school -- school themselves and gotten well organized and know what they're doing in their communities and want to increase their gardens. there will be gardens and a small ones, a few hundred square feet to those that are thousands of square feet large. i am taking over -- and taking over alleyways and the median strips, taking over long- abandoned areas and blighted areas. community groups and volunteers will form those alliances most

of the time in concert with either dpw or our public utilities commission or our parks, recreation and parks department and we're open to those kinds of collaborations'. the committee challenge grant is an excellent model. without anybody's knowledge, i still call the director and say what is going on. dpw tried to keep out of their business. now our city [inaudible] i am reaching in to find out, what are those great things the neighbor rwanda to do and i would like to go out there and visit them. i signed off last year in 2011 the urban agriculture "

ordinance. the ordinance for us was another reflection of city policy with the board of supervisors that we wanted to increase the opportunities for folks to grow crops. to grow agriculture, to be able to sell it if they so wish to to so we could have folks that already have that experience, but not necessarily at the corporate level. our urban agriculture is important to us. we have identified a number of abandoned lots all over the city and we would love to again excite volunteers and people who are interested in urban agriculture and the ability to distribute fresh produce to people who are in need. allow that to happen, working with our school district to see what can happen on their lots so the urban agriculture ordinance is something that you might want to take a look at. and finally, with our recreation and park department, the community gardens program, another broad program we have.

taking lots, whether they are a few hundred square feet or thousands of square feet and activating them and hosting volunteers to be able to build community gardens. we now have 35 and growing established community gardens in the city. and again, all run by volunteers. some of them that our individual lots and individuals will grow in them and there are lots that are shared responsibilities and shared neighborhood responsibilities to grow crops and to grow agriculture there for not only eating purposes or flowers or any of the things that individuals wish to have. and they are happening in our golden gate park as well as in our neighborhood parks. we're excited that you hopefully, you can see those as well. those are three small examples

of hopefully things that you can visit while you are here. i understand you are going through my home time, seattle next year -- my home town. seattle next. i was born and raised there. and of course, if that is not enough for you to do while you are here, you should talk to mohammed about getting tickets to the giants, the 49ers, or outside because that is -- outside plans because that is happening this weekend. that is the fun we have in our great city. we are a large city. i get to talk and write about the things we're doing, and i want you to know that the internment -- and permit, our commitment to greening are parts of what we're here to do because of the advocacy that you do

across the country, keep of that work, keep reminding mayors like me and everybody else we have an obligation to take the greening ideas and put them into the urban setting. give our kids the chance to get dirty with their hands, but watch things grow as they grow. this is the only way i know how to run the city. i have worked in this alleyways for many years. worked in the dirtiest smelling streets of our city. i come out loving our people even greater. whenever graffiti we have is our challenge. whenever illegal dumping that goes on. it is the ability to excite and organize our communities around these issues that bring out the best of all of us. the investment in our neighborhoods is one of my number one priorities as the mayor of the city.

and to have example after example of how we can unite more of our neighborhoods to make that investment, too. not just with money but with their skill sets. with their spirit. -- spirit of volunteerism. every other thing we can do to build strong communities. i know the guard association has as its core our own collaboration and education of folks to build that spirit out. and that spirit, the collaboration, that volunteerism will push us in government to do the right policies and open up more government were to the ideas that our neighborhoods have about building strong cities. thank you for being here. i want to thank all the sponsors from the hilton who is hosting as here to all the organizations, to our partners in ecology, the think tanks that

help keep us going and give us better ideas around the country as how we can do it. today, we are 70% recycling, -- 78% recycling, the highest in the nation. i hope we will get 2 1/2% with your help. thank you very much. [applause] stupak