The small format chain ambitions of the major department stores are a great opportunity for overseas brands to reach new parts of the country and new customers. Isetan Salone was there first and is very much a high end select shop, but now Takashimaya has come up with its own chain, one designed specifically for […]
Apparel retailers entered FY2014 with a good deal of worry about just how long consumers would stay away from stores after splurging before the consumption tax increase. The good news was that for many the second half of the year was positive, and by the end of the year, losses had been recouped. As a […]
Mitsukoshi Ginza will have a grand opening ceremony in mid-October to celebrate a further ¥4 billion remodelling designed to keep the store competitive with its neighbours and attract even more tourists. The key features of Mitsukoshi’s updated Ginza store include more Japanese brands, as well as more celebration of Japanese culture and services. A […]
After sales at department stores rose for the first time in 16 years in FY2013, most forecasts suggested those gains would be wiped out by the collapse in spending post-tax hike. This didn’t happen for most major stores in most big cities, even while regional stores continued their decline. The surge in tourism helped, but […]
Daimaru Shinsaibashi is to be closed and completely rebuilt over a three year period. The iconic Osaka store has suffered less than some of its rivals in the face of the big increase in department store sales space since 2011, but the building is ancient by Japanese standards and increasingly unsuitable for modern retailing. J […]
Retail results for FY2014 show just how well corporate retailing weathered the impact of the consumption tax increase in April 2014. Market share for the largest companies continues to grow, as does the percentage of sales taken up by private brands, but dynamism is also reflected in the emergence of new success stories. These are […]
H2O is a powerhouse in Kansai and its investment programme for the next decade looks set to confirm its dominance in key cities from Osaka down to Fukuoka in Kyushu. H2O Retailing continues to cement its position as one of the leading retailers in Kansai and Kyushu through selective investments in new retail facilities, upgrades […]
Calendar year results for the three big format sectors, department stores, GMS and supermarket chains, and convenience stores, provide a quick hint of what to expect from results at the end of the financial year. Although 2014 was a difficult year given the increase in prices from tax hikes and higher cost imports, on the […]
Omnichannel retailing seems to be the holy grail for retailing these days. Seven & I catalysed the strategy when it bought Nissen, aiming to make it the centre of an omnichannel retail empire, and many other major retailers are looking to incorporate e-commerce as part of a multi-channel strategy too. Now J Front has followed […]
Small format retailing is Isetan-Mitsukoshi’s way out of the strictures of the department store market. Until now its boutiques have been in airports and outlet malls. Last month it opened Isetan Salone, the first in a chain of at least 10 upscale select shops. It also opened more middle market stores in Osaka that could […]
H2O Retailing and Takashimaya have been flirting for years but have never got together. The two department stores now claim they will deepen collaboration, yet at the same time reducing their respective equity holdings in each other. The two firms were never a good match, and the latest announcement suggests a still minimal level of […]
Seven & I has been busy recently. As well as launching a new home fashion chain (see page 7) and making Barney’s Japan a full subsidiary, it has found time to negotiate a deal with Jean Paul Gaultier for a new apparel line to be sold through both Sogo Seibu and Ito-Yokado. After so many […]
Seven Eleven has long propped up its sister companies in Seven & I Holdings, but the situation is getting worse rather than better. While the convenience store posted another record profit for the first nine months of FY2014, Ito-Yokado and Nissen, both important for the group‘s omnichannel strategy, suffered major dips in performance yet again. […]
The pace of innovation at Isetan-Mitsukoshi recently has been unprecedented but it looks like being just the start. As well as small format stores, it is looking to grab a slice of the premium end of some lucrative service industries too, in weddings, travel and healthcare. It plans to open travel stores and ‘health care […]
It is telling when Japan’s once most exclusive department store chain lends its name to a shop in a highway service area. Not a sign of decline, but rather a testament to Isetan-Mitsukoshi’s renewed vigour, and its determination to bring its products to its customers wherever they are. Isetan-Mitsukoshi’s ambitions to expand its smaller store […]
Tourist shopping is now an increasingly important market for many retailers from high end to low end. Last month Takashimaya added a delivery-to-airport service to encourage tourists to get more shopping done throughout their trip rather than just near the end of their visit. The chain is even offering the service in more remote stores. […]
JR West will unveil a new section to its Lucua SC at Osaka Station next Spring, taking over 30,000 sqm of sales space from Isetan-Mitsukoshi. The latter will no longer have a contiguous sales space of its own, forced instead to operate separate sales areas as small stores. Ironically, this may turn out to be […]
A new app is helping retailers link customers with online shopping options, benefiting both the e-commerce operator and retailer alike, while helping customers try before they buy in a convenient location. Matsuya Ginza launched a revamped online store last month, making it possible to not only order product sold in the Ginza store, but also […]
Takashimaya Tamagawa has been one of the most successful department stores over the last two decades, and continues to hold its own despite a wealth of new competition in the area around Futako Tamagawa. It continues to update its sales floors, introducing new tenants and directly managed space to keep the locals keen. No wonder […]
As part of its diversification drive, Isetan-Mitsukoshi plans to turn its small import business, Club 21 Japan, into a significant player in overseas brand distribution. This will feed both its own department store sales floors, as well as its up coming select shop chain. At the same time the influence of Isetan Shinjuku in fashion […]
