Store and Sales-Floor Development That Earns Customer Support

「We actively invested in attractive sales floors and sought to increase customer traffic by renovating the Garden Building at Kimitsu, expanding the floor space of the Materials Building at Isesaki Nirazukamachi, and renovating the daily essentials and home-furnishings areas at Hitachinaka.」

「Against this backdrop, we adopted "Create fans of Joyful Honda!!" as this year's basic policy and worked to strengthen our product offerings, presentation and customer service so that customers would be satisfied.」

「We also actively promoted the review of sales-floor zoning and the recruitment of attractive tenants that improve customer convenience.」

「To provide a comfortable shopping experience, we actively implemented measures to enhance existing stores and invest in people, including rebuilding sales floors around current themes such as crime prevention and disaster preparedness and customers' latent needs, passing on customer-service skills combining advanced expertise and responsiveness, and improving the workplace environment to raise employee motivation through reviews of wages, benefits and other working conditions.」

「The Pro Shop format, which expands the range of tradespeople's and professionals' products in the materials sections of our home-improvement centers, was completed at Kimitsu in addition to the 3 stores converted in the first half. The purpose of expanding this range is to transform the sales floor from one where customers visit to buy materials, raw materials and components they lack at a job site into one where they can make consolidated purchases by taking maximum advantage of our store scale.」

「As a new product strategy, we promoted specialization in products for tradespeople and professionals. To respond accurately to the diversifying needs of various professional contractors, we expanded the range of tradespeople's and professionals' products in the materials sections of our home-improvement centers and developed the Pro Shop format at Joyful Honda Yoshioka, Joyful Honda Arakawaoki and Joyful Honda Moriya. We will continue expanding the Pro Shop format to other existing home-improvement centers.」

「Under our product strategy, we achieved one-stop shopping through deeper merchandising to meet strong demand from professional customers, and expanded customer traffic by demonstrating the proposal capabilities unique to physical stores through high-value-added products such as imported and self-developed products.」

「As another lifestyle-proposal initiative, we assigned specialists to select products that accurately respond to customers' changing latent needs and requests, expanded products imported directly from overseas, and focused on planning and developing our own premium products. We also proposed new living spaces and worked to create attractive sales floors that offer customers new discoveries.」

「To pursue lifestyle proposals further, we have evolved into a multifunctional specialty retailer through sales-floor development designed to stimulate customers' curiosity, including the sale of uniquely developed, highly scarce flowers, products such as all-breed harnesses and specialty pet food, and the rollout across all stores of workwear first sold at the Pro Shop Hondaya.」

「To implement this policy, we strengthened efforts to create continuously changing sales-floor presentations unlike anything before and establish sales floors that customers can enjoy. We also expanded the development and sale of high-value-added original products, value-priced products that deliver good products affordably at any time, and convenient, cost-effective large-capacity products. In this way, we strengthened initiatives to acquire repeat customers across generations as a dependable presence both in emergencies and in normal times.」

「As an action centered on essential products under the execution of measures based on our corporate mission, we strengthened ongoing sales-floor presentation, established sales floors that customers could enjoy, and expanded EDLP and M&M products. Through these efforts, we advanced initiatives to broaden and deepen our customer base so that we would be a dependable presence both in emergencies and in normal times.」

「As actions centered on essential products, we actively worked to strengthen sales of original products such as daily consumables and general merchandise, as well as promotions for value-priced products. For lifestyle proposals, we also focused on strengthening proposals linked to the online video service Joyful Channel.」

「Under our renewed challenge to grow sales, as lifestyle proposals addressing unplanned consumption in existing stores, we promoted the opening of limited-time pop-up stores and expanded sales floors for garden and camping products using promotional spaces. For planned consumption, we also focused on selling original products developed around daily consumables and general merchandise as essential products that customers should always find.」

「Specifically, to introduce products and develop sales floors based on latent needs, we promoted the ongoing introduction of newly developed and newly sourced products that capture trends in unplanned consumption. We also advanced cross-merchandising of high-gross-margin product groups and displays in multiple locations within stores.」

「In June, we integrated the product masters and checkout functions of the home-improvement centers and JOYFUL-2 (arts and crafts), which had previously been operated separately, and are providing a diverse range of lifestyle proposals through integrated sales floors.」

「Under our renewed challenge to grow sales, we will promote the integration of sales floors and lifestyle proposals, seek to establish low prices as part of responding to planned consumption, and emphasize staple products offering essentials at standard prices. At the same time, to create unplanned consumption, we will integrate these with products offering high added value, distinctive scarcity and value.」

「As part of these efforts, at Newport Hitachinaka we implemented changes to the store sales-floor layout and renovated the tenant zone as part of our lifestyle proposals, which offer customers a richer lifestyle.」

「To emphasize product relevance from the customer's perspective, we changed the groupings and names of product categories and reorganized the organization under the new product groupings.」

「As the first step, we carried out major sales-floor renovations in spring 2020 at Newport Hitachinaka for large-format stores and Yachiyo for medium-sized stores. Going forward, we will continue to evolve these 2 stores by adjusting their sales floors to reflect local characteristics, while considering and implementing a rollout across other existing stores.」

「We are currently working to build standardized models in the Hitachinaka area to realize a broad trading area that leverages store scale, and in the Yachiyo area to create stores more closely rooted in the local community.」

「Against this social and economic backdrop, our group is working to create stores and sales floors centered on customers’ interests, with “the frontline first” as the guiding principle of our core home improvement center business, in pursuit of further corporate growth and development.」

「At our stores, we are creating sales floors across the different facilities in each area, including selling Garden Center products at the Home Improvement Center Lifestyle Center and Materials Center.」

「We are also reviewing product classifications, revising sales-floor presentation and assortment methods based on data, systematically implementing sales-floor reforms and promoting the creation of attractive stores. In August, at the Mizuho store, we introduced 5 tenants and changed the zoning of our sales floors for lighting, eyewear and watches.」

「Going forward, we will further develop this policy by improving customer service capabilities, including product-related knowledge and skills and the ability to provide information, strengthening assortments that meet professional demand, and thoroughly developing sales floors that can stimulate new demand.」

「We introduced products and developed sales floors under the theme of “health,” creating specialty sections for nursing-care and rehabilitation shoes at 13 home improvement centers. Under the theme of “renovation,” we introduced a broad selection of imported European wallpaper suitable for easy installation and DIY use, including nonwoven wallpaper organized by color and pattern, at all 15 home improvement centers. As a new initiative in our strong pet business, we expanded the handling of reptiles, a differentiated product category, to all 14 pet centers and assigned specialist staff.」

「In addition, to improve customer convenience and create facilities with attention to their appearance, in August 2016 we improved the entrance to the Pet Center Chiba New Town store, using decorative asphalt, and installed exterior lighting and illuminations. To improve the sales-floor environment, in September 2016 we renovated the greenhouse at the Garden Center Nitta store, including replacing the wooden floor with a concrete floor and replacing and repairing the roof.」

「Following this, in November 2016, we introduced the T-Point service at each JOYFUL-2 store, the large specialty art and craft stores operated by consolidated subsidiary Honda Sangyo Co., Ltd. In addition, to raise awareness of our T-Point service and further strengthen customer traffic, we broadcast a television commercial on Chiba TV in November 2016 announcing its introduction at all stores.」

「Against this backdrop, our group has worked to strengthen existing stores and expand services with the aim of creating stores and sales floors supported by customers. As an initiative to strengthen customer traffic, JOYFUL HONDA CO.,LTD. successively introduced the T-Point service at all 15 home improvement centers, pet centers and garden centers from late June to early September 2016, under a point-program agreement with T Point Japan Co., Ltd.」

「Regarding the second challenge, “creating stores and sales floors supported by customers,” we have pursued deep product assortments with enhanced functionality and applications, together with overwhelming product volume, guided by our group’s corporate philosophy: “Our customers’ joy is our joy as a company.”」