Significant growth through organizational restructuring of the hygiene testing equipment business

「主要顧客への更なる販売促進活動、新製品提案、新規取引先開拓活動等により、売上高は過去最高となりました。」

「Through sales activities that accurately captured these demand conditions and steady optimization of selling prices, sales for the current interim consolidated accounting period reached a record high and remained above the level of this year's plan.」

「Going forward, we will strengthen our sales structure and build a more agile sales organization capable of deepening relationships with existing customers and developing new customers.」

「We began selling a new product, a simple culture medium for microbial detection, aS-Medium.」

「In addition, in October 2022, we opened and began operations at the Shizuoka sales office in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, as a new sales location. Sales activities in the area have begun to contribute to sales growth.」

「In October 2022, we opened the Shizuoka sales office in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, as a new sales base following Tokyo, Osaka and Fukuoka, and began activities to provide detailed follow-up to customers in the area and further increase sales.」

「Orders for petri dishes for the cancer test N-NOSE for 株式会社ＨＩＲＯＴＳＵバイオサイエンス also remained firm. On the cost side, prices for PS (polystyrene), the primary material used in the petri dishes, continued to rise. While continuing to actively pursue cost reductions through manufacturing rationalization, we implemented partial increases in selling prices to customers. However, these measures were insufficient to absorb the deterioration in profitability, and profit remained weak, as it had in the first quarter of the consolidated fiscal year. As a result, sales for the six-month cumulative consolidated period were ¥894 million, up 7.2% year on year, and operating profit was ¥48 million, down 32.5% year on year.」

「Amid major changes in the industrial structure of the food hygiene industry during the COVID-19 pandemic, this business remained firm, recording 15 consecutive months of year-on-year revenue growth. As a result, sales for the nine-month cumulative consolidated period reached a record high. In addition to the results of sales activities at 3 locations in Tokyo, Osaka and the newly established Fukuoka sales office, the increase in shipments of petri dishes accompanying the promotion of cancer-testing petri dishes (N-NOSE) for 株式会社ＨＩＲＯＴＳＵバイオサイエンス also contributed.」

「Amid major changes in the industrial structure of the food hygiene industry during the COVID-19 pandemic, this business remained firm, recording 15 consecutive months of year-on-year revenue growth. As a result, sales for the nine-month cumulative consolidated period reached a record high. In addition to the results of sales activities at 3 locations in Tokyo, Osaka and the newly established Fukuoka sales office, the increase in shipments of petri dishes accompanying the promotion of cancer-testing petri dishes (N-NOSE) for 株式会社ＨＩＲＯＴＳＵバイオサイエンス also contributed.」

「As the industrial structure of the food hygiene industry changed substantially during the COVID-19 pandemic, sales of food products for retail remained strong, while orders for cancer-testing Petri dishes (N-NOSE) supplied to HIROTSU Bio Science Co., Ltd. remained solid. Standalone first-half net sales reached a record high since the company's founding.」

「Amid these market conditions, orders for our business, which had remained below the previous year's level from May through September 2020, turned around, and orders continued to exceed the same period of the previous year from October onward. Quarterly net sales for the third-quarter consolidated accounting period under review were ¥418 million, a record high on a quarterly basis.」

「Due to the impact of the novel coronavirus and the resulting decline in orders from the tourism and food-service industries, quarterly net sales decreased 8.3% year on year, while cumulative first-half net sales declined 7.9%.」

「Although orders from the food-service market declined due to the impact of the novel coronavirus, net sales remained strong through April of the quarter under review as demand was stimulated for out-of-home meals prepared for home consumption, such as prepared foods and delivery, and meals prepared and eaten at home. Thereafter, sales continued to fall below the same months of the previous year, declining 18.4% year on year in May and 10.5% in June.」

「The business, which is said to have entered a mature phase, recorded revenue growth for 2 consecutive fiscal years.」

「Ten months have passed since we opened a sales office in Tokyo in March 2019 to acquire major customers and conduct field sales. In addition to more detailed customer follow-up and new customer acquisition, which were not possible through the head office's telemarketing sales alone, the resumption of sales to customers whose orders had stopped for more than 6 months proved effective, and sales for the first nine months of the current consolidated fiscal year returned to growth for the first time in 4 fiscal years.」

「In March 2019, we opened a sales office in Tokyo to acquire major customers and conduct field sales. Ten months later, we had fully launched expansion activities through face-to-face sales in addition to the head office's existing telemarketing sales, and results were steadily emerging. New sales methods, including the use of our website, also proved effective, and standalone sales for the first half reached a record high of ¥800 million.」

「In March 2019, we opened the business's first sales office in Tokyo to acquire major customers and conduct field sales, launching expansion activities through face-to-face sales in addition to the head office's existing telemarketing sales.」

「Amid these developments, the newly established Sales Strategy Planning Department and IT Systems Division are working together, while the functions and roles of the sales planning team and telemarketing staff are being specialized and new activities are being rolled out from 3 perspectives: retaining stable, continuing customers and preventing lost business, reactivating customers whose orders had ceased, and acquiring new customers. These initiatives are producing definite results.」

「Against this backdrop, the newly established Sales Strategy Planning Department and IT Systems Department are working together to build a new framework for efficient sales activities. From the three perspectives of retaining stable recurring customers (preventing customer losses), reactivating customers whose orders had stopped, and acquiring new customers, the framework further differentiates the functions and roles of the sales planning team and telemarketing staff.」

「As a result of actively improving the working environment and pursuing local direct hiring, we are on track to hire the planned number of people, are securing the target number of calls, and are steadily increasing the number of new customers acquired. Going forward, we will build a well-staffed team and a new sales structure and work to expand sales.」

「Following the relocation of the head office and plant to Higashiomi, Shiga Prefecture, we actively improved the working environment and pursued local direct hiring for telemarketing staff. As a result, we are on track to hire the planned number of people and are securing the target number of calls. Going forward, we will build a well-staffed team and a new sales structure and work to expand sales.」

「From the third-quarter consolidated accounting period onward, improvements in employment conditions resulted in more than 1.5 times the target number of applicants, and we will overhaul the sales structure and work to expand sales.」

「To achieve substantial positive growth in the current fiscal year, we will overhaul and strengthen the organizational structure of the business division.」