July-August 2026 Issue

FOCUS

M&A for scale & price cuts: FY2025 Retail Ranking

Japan’s top retailers had a strong FY2025 on paper, with the top 81 companies now controlling 48% of all retail sales. But this was a year defined as much by reconfiguration as growth, with drugstores, discounters and e-commerce taking share from supermarkets, department stores and home centres. A wave of M&A reshaped the competitive map faster than organic performance alone could explain. This focus ranks the top retailers with sales of ¥250 billion or more, and examines what their results reveal about where Japanese retail is heading next.

Onward: a benchmark for modernisation

Onward demonstrates what traditional fashion companies can achieve when tough decisions are made – going from 70% of sales through department stores in 2015 to just 20% by 2030 – and investment poured into new ideas. After posting its best results in decades, Onward has announced ambitious targets for the next five years based on an omnichannel model that works.

Editorial: Focus, consolidation and IP

PPI: Donpen’s rise to stardom

Mascots are everywhere in Japan, but are often dismissed as just a cuddly Japanese eccentricity when they are in fact a carefully managed core of brand marketing, and treated as important IP assets rather than just a display on a shopfront. It took PPI (Pan Pacific International Holdings) the best part of three decades, and a near-catastrophic public misstep, to apply this model to Don Quijote’s own friendly penguin. It has become an exemplar of why mascots matter in Japanese marketing.

25% of shoppers use AI, 60% trust it to make decisions

Hakuhodo claims that 25% of Japanese consumers already use AI when shopping, with AI overtaking site reviews as a trusted information source – and that 60% are willing to delegate the final purchase decision entirely to AI. If true, this would suggest that AI agents are an important new consumer touchpoint for brands and retailers as further new initiatives from LY attest.

Yamada-Edion: the ¥2.5 trillion merger that was always coming

Yamada and Edion may finally be tying the knot, creating a ¥2.5 trillion electronics behemoth that could dominate a shrinking market. But previous talks failed, and the initial announcement, while positive, doesn’t say a lot about how the new company will grow. What it does demonstrate is just how fashionable M&A has become across all formats and sectors to shore up share in a fast-consolidating retail market.

Qoo10 hits ¥300 billion GTVs

Qoo10 has crossed the ¥300 billion GTV threshold, triggering designation as a Specified Digital Platform under Japanese law and confirming its graduation from niche Korean beauty store to mainstream e-commerce platform, with 28 million members and a 30%-plus share of Japan’s online beauty market.

Itochu Takes Control of Champion

Itochu has acquired Champion’s Japanese licensing and distribution rights, partnering with digital retail specialist Inglewood to run the brand. Current retail sales stand at ¥27 billion, but Itochu is betting on a 30% jump within three years, backed by an omnichannel overhaul and Inglewood’s e-commerce and AI-driven retail platform.

Onitsuka Tiger: a ¥200 billion brand

Onitsuka Tiger posted record revenues last year at a 37.7% operating margin – far outperforming its parent and setting the stage for a full spin-off into a new subsidiary. The brand is likely to move further upmarket as a full lifestyle brand and is targeting ¥200 billion longer-term, anchored by six upcoming new flagships and a long-awaited return to the US market.

York lays out plans for revival

Last year, York HD took on all the bits of Seven & I that needed fixing, leaving the parent to focus on Seven Eleven. A year on, the company is planning more investment in stores, private label, and experiential shopping in the hope of dragging back price-conscious shoppers.

Muji closing in on ¥1 trillion and fatter profits

Ryohin Keikaku is forecasting ¥887 billion in revenues this year at a 10% operating margin. Vertical integration of sourcing is driving gross margin expansion, and a ¥1 trillion target with 12% margins is now firmly in sight.

Yutori bets on M&A and AI for further growth

Yutori started as a Gen Z streetwear platform but has rapidly evolved into a diversified lifestyle group spanning fashion, cosmetics, lingerie, and Korea. After revenues jumped 71% in FY2025, the company is now targeting ¥18.5 billion this year, backed by full ownership of Her lip to, aggressive M&A, and AI-driven efficiency.

Yodobashi Ikebukuro: more important than Seibu?

Yodobashi Ikebukuro finally opened last month next to a now much smaller Seibu Ikebukuro. The store will do well and represents a real threat to rivals nearby, but as Fortress switches attention to its other department store properties, landowners want reassurance that it has the right model. Delays and other problems with the Ikebukuro site raise questions for the other remaining Sogo & Seibu stores.

Beat the heat: Japan’s war on summer, one gadget at a time

Japan releases dozens of ingenious new products each month, but the increasing heat and a growing love of pets, brought out a bumper crop in June.

Retail Data: Shopping malls up 10%, department stores 8.3%

IN BRIEF

Daimaru to close Shimonoseki store

Human Made buys Undercover

Konaka expands Future Suit Technology chain

Over-40s women keep spending but worry about inflation

Starbucks Japan looking to sell?

Bookstores fall below 10,000 outlets

And ST acquires stake in 60% to expand Asian brands

Inbound recovery at department stores

Barneys Japan opens vintage luxury store

Lalaport targets Amazon Prime Day with own campaign

Ginza updates coming

40% of couples hide their spending from partners

Q’s Mall hits new record

Sanki Shoji creates holding company

Major Kita-Aoyama building slated for 2030

Seven Eleven ties with Dentsu and CyberAgent on Retail Media

Cole Haan opens in Nagoya’s Midland Square

Shinkansen deliveries expanding

Avolta buys DFS Okinawa

Sazaby opens store for State of Escape bag brand

NTT Docomo aims for AI ecosystem

Lion and Fabric Tokyo offer washable suits

Birkenstock opens new concept store

Cocotoku: Beisia’s new discount supermarket

Lawson’s Happy Town community format

Clothing deodorising service in malls

Usui Department Store still struggles despite update