Japanese department store Tokyu Hands plans to boost its overseas sales, which now contribute 1 per cent of overall sales.
Overseas income for its latest year totalled about 800 million yen (US$7.69 million).
A third store is opening next month in Singapore, where Tokyo Hands has had managed stores for two years, and next year the group plans to start trading in Malaysia.
Tokyu Hands opened its first overseas branch in Taiwan in 2000 and now has 15 franchised stores on the island.
Takenori Tsuji, who heads Tokyu Hands’ international business, says the Taiwan stores are mainly in Taipei with management entrusted to the franchisees, “but we consult on the selection of merchandise and store layout”.
He says trends in Japan, such as aging consumers, have made it hard for the store to grow domestically.
Tokyu Hands’ first directly managed store overseas opened in China in 2012, but closed it in January this year. Tsuji says this was a result of management difficulties.
“It took more time and effort than expected to clear customs when we brought in products from Japan, making it hard for us to sell new products quickly.
“Some sales people quit soon after being hired, and it was hard to train Japanese employees in the local area.”
Six months after launching, the store had a temporary sharp drop in sales when relations between China and Japan worsened over the disputed Senkaku Islands. However, full-year sales were “reasonably good”.