Focus: Every 12 months, things just seem to get worse

Grim results from the trade associations of department stores and chain stores reveal the continued negative impact of poor performing smaller chains and stores. While the leaders hold on to or, even grow market share, the less dynamic of the large chains are being muscled out, particularly in apparel.

Trading firms revamp fashion business

Mitsui has a smaller brand portfolio than its competitor, Itochu Shoji, but most analysts regard it as a more coherent and stable one with a better long-term performance. With competition intensifying, Mitsui has announced wide-ranging reorganization of its fashion division, including a move into China. Mitsubishi Shoji, while not much of a player in brand development, has also laid its claim to a greater slice of the lucrative OEM business.

Ito-Yokado slashes profit forecasts

For many analysts and journalists, Ito-Yokado is still the darling of Japanese retailing despite being overtaken in sales and sales space by Aeon in recent years. True, it has long been the one truly profitable company around, but there are increasing signs of struggle as the world moves on and Ito-Yokado desperately tries to stick to its tried and trusted formula.

Box: Ito-Yokado spruces up apparel

Drugstores ready to consolidate

The drugstore sector is one of the fastest developing of the new modern retail sectors. Two powerful chains, both of which are busy forming alliances with independents across the country, lead it. One, Aeon Welcia, looked well in the lead only 12 months ago, but now its rival, Matsumotokiyoshi, is back on track and is about to pull ahead.

BOX NID: a hopefully interesting innovation

Capitaland buys another mall

Unlike Chelsea Property Group and Pacifica Malls, Capitaland is not developing shopping malls in Japan. Instead it is buying them, one by one.

Matsuya: 24 new consumer types

While based on tried and trusted methods, Matsuya is about to introduce a whole new system of customer classification that splits its clientele into 24 different types. What kind of customer are you?

Large GMS have a great New Year

Despite a downturn in the economy overall, all but one of the big five GMS chains had a much better New Year than we have recently come to expect.

Honeys sees a 41% jump in sales

Honeys is managing to sustain its fast pace of store openings. While this is helping drive sales growth, and the shift to Chinese production has done wonders for the bottom line, sales at existing stores will need some attention if a long-term, secure base is to be built.

Mitsukoshi annex fails to shine

Mitsukoshi opened its new HQ annex back in October. In the first three months, sales for the HQ Nihonbashi store are up on last year, but the improved sales areas have been balanced by falls elsewhere. Overall, this is not the most successful new Tokyo retail development in recent history.

Komeri: retailing for the countryside

Komeri is one of Japan's largest home center retailers, but it is also the only major chain that actively targets chain. In many ways Komeri resembles rivals such as Kohnan Shoji and Cainz, although its stores are smaller. Now, in the new H&G format launched last year, stores not only sell to farmers, but actually provide a sales point for local farm produce as well.

Don Quijote: strong despite set backs

Don Quijote is Japan's largest discount retailer and one that believes in cramming as much product as possible into a small space. This, along with inadequate fire prevention measures, apparently made it a target of arson attacks back in December, but the company still looks strong despite that sudden and dramatic set back.

“My brand”: remade and customized clothes go mainstream

The shift to individualism in fashion styles has been clear for several years with trends such as customization of vintage and second hand goods. Increasingly though, young fashionistas are less influenced by leading fashion brands and opinion leaders. Now, after the 'my home' and 'my car' eras of yesteryear, Japan has 'my brand': consumers creating their own unique brand: and some are even selling their home-made designs.

Credit cards: just plain popular

Japanese still use a lot of cash, but it is only the oldest consumers who have no credit card at all. Today credit cards are the norm and the cards’ brand value, profitable transaction fees, and customer information benefits mean that more and more are companies are introducing them.

Millennium: back in the black

Millennium Retailing, made up of Sogo and Seibu, two of Japan's most controversially run department stores, has taken these chains from disaster story to quick success—or so it would seem. With the early resolution of the company's debt problems, it is now looking to expand aggressively.

Short News stories

DP Japan expands sales of Italian bags
Cashmere sweater imports up 34%
Tod’s opens store in Okinawa, Japan
Moonstar launches Kappa fashion footwear
Itochu signs Spalding
Narumiya International to go public
Cecile's biggest loss
La Perla signs with Itochu and Wacoal
Isetan sells Barneys shareholding
Uniqlo in Ginza
PC shipments in Japan rise 3.8% in 2004
Papyrus selling Western e-books
More movie theaters, cheaper movies
Kojima and Nittsu tie to sell electronics
Ace signs Zero Halliburton
Mitsui Real Estate's Kawasaki retail development
Chiyoda consolidates apparel chains
Kenzo Sues LVMH
Lawson: tiny profit in China
French womenswear show in Yoyogi
Make fashion from Japan and sell all over the world
Aeon expands Senior Care concept
Daimaru food to anchor a shopping center
Daiei: small moves
Uniqlo to buy Etam UK?
Beer shipments down
adidas does retailing
Sony drops PDA