Retailers in Japan continued to see very low sales levels in May.
TOKYO — Retailers in Japan continued to see very low sales levels in May as the country’s state of emergency remained in place for several areas well into the latter half of the month. Department stores in particular took a big hit, with some stores not reopening their doors until early June.
“Same-store sales declined by a considerable 18.1 percent year-on-year in May as approximately 20 percent of our stores were closed temporarily on average across the month and we were unable to conduct our regular sales promotions for Japan’s annual Golden Week holiday and Uniqlo anniversaries,” Fast Retailing said in a statement. “However, sales of summer ranges proved strong and our stores that were open for business experienced many days when sales exceeded the previous year’s levels.
Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings said same-store sales among its five department stores in the Tokyo metropolitan area plummeted by 90.2 percent last month compared with May 2019. The biggest decline for an individual store came from the Mitsukoshi store in Tokyo’s Ginza neighborhood, where sales were down by 95.4 percent year-on-year.
Sales from Takashimaya’s 16 department stores in Japan fell by 63.1 percent in May, compared with the same month last year. Every single store saw sales fall double digits, with the smallest drop being 38 percent. All of the retailer’s stores that had been temporarily closed were reopened by May 27, but that wasn’t enough time for sales to turn around. The company also said in a release that tax-free sales to shoppers from outside of Japan had plummeted by 98.7 percent year-on-year last month.
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