Expansion of sales by focusing on the Health & Beauty category

「Health & Beauty, which represents a large share of the category mix, has continued to expand steadily, as in the past, helped by the impact of M&A, expansion of in-store share, and strong performance by exclusive and priority-distribution products.」

「By category, sales growth was driven by the Health & Beauty and Pet categories, both priority categories under the medium-term management plan that the Company has continued to focus on as key initiatives.」

「Expand in-store share by strengthening differentiation」

「Health & Beauty, a major category by sales mix, grew through higher inbound demand and expanded sales of exclusive and priority-distribution products.」

「In the Health & Beauty category, we are strengthening differentiation by expanding exclusive and priority-distribution products. In pet-related products, Japel Co., Ltd., Arata Group's specialist pet-products wholesaler, is pursuing a strategy that draws on its expertise, including proposals for food tailored to pets' health and life stage and treats that make life more enjoyable for pets and their owners.」

「Health & Beauty, a major category by sales mix, saw demand grow, particularly for skincare and makeup products, as domestic and international movement increased, including stronger inbound demand.」

「Health & Beauty, a major category by sales mix, saw demand for skincare and makeup products grow as the reclassification of COVID-19 as a Category 5 disease stimulated domestic and international movement and gave consumers more opportunities to go out.」

「By category, pet products and Other increased 10.7% year on year, home care 5.5%, paper products 5.1%, Health & Beauty 4.6%, home goods 4.5% and household products 4.2%, with sales remaining strong. Health & Beauty, a major category by sales mix, saw demand for skincare and makeup products grow as the reclassification of COVID-19 as a Category 5 disease stimulated domestic and international movement and gave consumers more opportunities to go out.」

「Health & Beauty, a major category by sales mix, saw demand for skincare and makeup products grow as consumers had more opportunities to go out following the reclassification of COVID-19 as a Category 5 disease.」

「Health & Beauty, a major category by sales mix, saw demand for skincare and makeup products grow as consumers had more opportunities to go out following the reclassification of COVID-19 under the Infectious Diseases Control Law to Category 5.」

「Health & Beauty, a major category by sales mix, performed strongly, particularly in skincare and makeup products, as opportunities to go out increased following the easing of activity restrictions and the company strengthened proposals and collaboration with business partners.」

「Health & Beauty, a major category by sales mix, generated 138,266, or 107.3% of the previous corresponding period. The company expanded transactions by strengthening collaboration with business partners in anticipation of social trends emerging after the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. Demand for skincare and makeup products also grew as restrictions on activities were eased and consumers had more opportunities to go out following the decline in COVID-19 cases.」

「Health & Beauty, a major category by sales mix, saw demand for skincare and makeup products grow, as restrictions on activities were eased and consumers had more opportunities to go out following the decline in COVID-19 cases.」

「In Health & Beauty, sales of hygiene-related products such as masks and hand soap declined as the special demand seen in the previous year unwound, while hair care and cosmetics performed strongly.」

「Cosmetics demand fell sharply in the previous fiscal year due to restrictions on outings and other factors, but demand for skincare and makeup products has increased in the current fiscal year, and consumers' lifestyles have changed significantly from the early stages of the spread of COVID-19.」

「Cosmetics demand fell sharply in the previous fiscal year due to restrictions on outings and other factors, but demand gradually recovered in the current fiscal year, and consumers' lifestyles have changed significantly from the early stages of the spread of COVID-19.」

「Health & Beauty, previously the fastest-growing category, increased 5.3% year on year. Even as cosmetics sales remained weak due to the disappearance of inbound demand and restrictions on nonessential, nonurgent outings, hygiene products such as masks and disinfectants grew significantly as awareness of preventive measures increased.」

「Health & Beauty, previously the fastest-growing category, increased 3.6% year on year. Cosmetics sales remained weak because inbound demand disappeared and consumers refrained from nonessential, nonurgent outings, while hygiene products such as masks and disinfectants grew sharply as awareness of preventive measures increased.」

「Health & Beauty, previously the fastest-growing category, increased 6.7% year on year. This reflected weak cosmetics sales due to the disappearance of inbound demand and restrictions on nonessential, nonurgent outings, while hygiene products such as masks and disinfectants grew significantly as awareness of preventive measures increased.」

「Health & Beauty contains many high-margin products and is an important category in the growth strategy. The company integrated Fashion Arata, a former cosmetics wholesaling subsidiary, in April 2019 and has focused on the category.」

「By category, sales of Health & Beauty increased 4.9% year on year, Household increased 5.3%, Household Goods increased 4.7%, and Paper Products increased 5.0%, all performing strongly.」

「By category, Health & Beauty increased 6.2% year on year, household products 9.7%, home goods 8.7% and paper products 10.1%, with sales remaining strong.」

「By format, drugstores increased 2.7% year on year, discount stores 5.0% and Other, which includes online retailers and cross-border businesses, 7.0%, while home centers and SM were below the previous corresponding period. By category, Health & Beauty increased 2.9% year on year, household products 4.6% and home goods 5.3%, with sales remaining strong. Home care fell below the previous corresponding period because sales of summer products such as insecticides were weak, partly due to the prolonged rainy season.」

「With respect to gross profit, we worked to improve the gross profit margin by expanding sales of highly profitable categories. However, due to higher freight costs, operating profit for the nine-month period of the current consolidated fiscal year increased only slightly year on year, resulting in an operating margin of 1.20%. Health & Beauty 178,343 105.6」

「By focusing on the Health & Beauty category and expanding sales to offset the decline in earnings caused by lower sales of seasonal products and other items, the gross profit margin was 10.29%.」