Most people associate Kirin with beer. That may be changing. Today Kirin revealed it is buying health and wellness company Fancl for JPY 220 billion (US$ 1.3b ) According to Bloomberg the purchase price is a 43% premium to the stock’s closing price. This is not Kirin’s first foray into health. It has a pharma and […]
Can retailers excel at food manufacturing? Japanese retail giant 7&i believes so. I’ve updated this blog post on 23rd May to include the above video Whilst 7&i’s CVS business is well known, and a key driver of profitability, the opposite is true for its superstore division, internally branded SST. SST accounts for 31% of group
The recent rise of Japan’s Nikkei (up 20% in 2024) has set many hearts pumping. One surprising performer has been herbal medicine maker Tsumura whose stock has soared 40% this year. Unless you are a doctor or a heavy user of herbal medicine, Tsumura is not a familiar name, and written in Katakana (ツムラ）does not
I’ll start with a confession. I love electric cars; I drive Tesla. Nissan was one of the first legacy automakers to launch an EV. Today its pioneer brand Leaf is still around, although its tech is jaded. Nissan remains king in Japan’s EV market, its newest model, the wittily named Sakura (cherry blossom), tops the
Kao is a very large Japanese toiletry, cosmetics and chemical business listed on the Tokyo stock exchange. Many of its brands are household favourites, think Attack (laundry detergent) Kirei Kirei, Merries, Magiclean, Bioré or Kanebo cosmetics. Kao has recently been going through some house cleaning of its own. Many years ago it developed and entered
Last week the No 2 Japanese telecoms giant KDDI revealed plans with partner Mitsubishi to take Lawson convenience stores private. Lawson stores are ubiquitous in Japan (there are over 14,000) as is KDDI’s mobile business which trades under the ‘Au’ brand. 会うmeaning ‘meet’ as does 合う meaning ‘unite’. Both kanjis are pronounced ‘Au’. All are
Costco has succeeded in Japan where others have failed. Last week it opened its 32nd store. Join me ot see what I found!
Farmer’s markets are a little known but important trade channel
No Japanese retailer has successfully solved the senior shopper conundrum. Is Tokushimaru about to change that?
Snickers, the iconic confectionery brand, has global sales well in excess of $3b. Well that is until last year’s voluntary recall that saw the candy bar vanish from shelves. Here in Japan, Snickers was rare in being one of only three global confectionery brands that had almost universal distribution. Besides Kit Kat and Haribo, the
The Snickers recall has been a long marathon. Can Mars’ commercial teams fight back? Read More »