Product planning and development for the new business style

「From the current consolidated fiscal year, the Company has established “business casual” as a new product category, reflecting the continuing shift toward more casual attire in business settings.」

「For summer 2026, the Company aims to expand sales by further expanding its original, high-profile products, including “Mystery Dry” shirts made from tricot fabric incorporating special fibers to achieve a high degree of opacity and reduce sweat marks, and “Ifmic” shirts that support work performance through improved blood circulation.」

「For summer 2025, the Company has begun developing new products, including “Hiyatto Cool” shirts made from a xylitol dot-coated material with moisture absorption, heat absorption and cooling functions, and “Heat Guard” shirts offering UV protection and heat-blocking performance like a parasol.」

「For spring/summer 2025, the Company will strengthen proposals for new products and work to expand orders, including “Hiyatto Cool” shirts made from a xylitol dot-coated material with moisture absorption, heat absorption and cooling functions, and “Heat Guard” shirts offering UV protection and heat-blocking performance like a parasol.」

「For spring/summer 2025, the Company is strengthening proposals for new products and working to expand orders, including materials with a xylitol dot-coating finish that provides moisture absorption, heat absorption and a cooling sensation, and blouses made from the heat-shielding material “SunShelter.”」

「For fall/winter 2024, the Company is strengthening proposals for new products and working to expand orders, including men's shirts and women's blouses featuring sublimation-transfer prints with fine patterns on tricot fabric, heat-generating and temperature-regulating materials, and outerwear with moisture permeability and water repellency.」

「In casualwear, knit business polo shirts continued to perform well, with a broader range of products using tricot fabric in particular, and knit items are trending upward. In womenswear, the Company is proposing eco-friendly materials such as bamboo rayon in coordinated blouse, trouser and skirt sets. In uniforms, products using tricot fabric have also performed well, and the Company is seeking to expand sales by strengthening new products, including school shirts made from the same easy-care material.」

「To address the third quarter, which falls between the main dress shirt seasons, we are strengthening coordinated sales of items such as vests, jackets and cardigans, and are also working to develop and sell new items. As temperatures fell in December, outerwear performed well, and the casual GERRY brand also continued to perform steadily.」

「Following spring/summer 2022 products, orders for autumn/winter 2022 and spring 2023 ODM and OEM products were also trending upward, and the Company's own and partner factories in Japan and overseas continued operating at full capacity. In addition, orders for the GERRY brand, launched during the current period as a casualwear brand, were progressing steadily.」

「To address this situation, under the slogan “FANFUN150” for the three-year medium-term management plan launched during the current fiscal year, we will implement three basic policies: building original brands, increasing earnings by strengthening B2C operations, and developing new products and expanding sales in the dresswear, casualwear, women's and uniform businesses. Through these efforts, we will work to achieve further recoveries in sales and earnings.」

「In addition to the traditional dresswear business, we are combining our response to lifestyle changes with the functional expertise we have developed over many years, working on new development in areas such as sleepwear and bedding fashion, including pajamas, sheets and cushion covers made from shirt fabrics, and care fashion, including carewear made from shirt fabrics. As a shirt manufacturer in the apparel industry, we are creating new applications for shirts and working toward realizing new businesses.」

「We will work to strengthen the development of differentiated products, including shirts with virus-free pockets, which combine mask storage with antiviral functionality, and casualwear with heat-generating functionality.」

「As business styles shift from suits toward a new work style centered on jackets and shirts, accompanying the move toward more casualwear, we will strengthen the planning, production and operations of shirt jackets, shirt dresses, cut-and-sew items and other products suited to this shift.」

「While maintaining and expanding the share of our traditional dress shirt business, we further strengthened our product planning and production functions and focused on expanding our casualwear and women's businesses in response to these changes.」

「Under these business conditions, although the first half of the summer clothing season was difficult due to factors including a cool summer, the shift toward more casual business styles increased the occasions on which shirts are worn as tops, and knit highly shape-retaining shirts and women's shirts performed well.」

「Despite these business conditions, our group's sales of knit shirts and women's shirts designed for more casual offices continued to grow, as the spread of office casualwear and global warming increased the occasions on which shirts are worn as tops and extended the selling season for shirts.」

「Under these conditions, although our group struggled during the first half of the summer season due to the cool summer and other factors, sales of knit-fabric shirts grew against the backdrop of the shift toward more casual business styles, high-performance easy-care shirts also remained firm, our share of custom shirts at department stores expanded, and internet sales and other channels grew.」

「At mass retailers and men's clothing specialty stores, we also strengthened our offering of business casual and women's shirts, and functional shirts with advanced easy-care properties performed well.」

「As lifestyles change, centered on more diverse working styles, businesswear is also shifting toward a more comfortable, functional and cool new business style. To respond to these changes, we will strengthen the planning and development of products centered on shirts for the new business style.」