Strengthening the prize business through the introduction of original game machines and prizes

「Same-store sales reached 106.0% of the previous fiscal year, substantially exceeding the plan, with the prize business in particular reaching 110.4% and significantly driving overall performance.」

「Same-store sales were strong at 106.5% of the previous year, while the prize business, which has the highest sales mix, reached 111.3% of the level in the same period of the previous year during the interim consolidated accounting period. Kids prizes, an area of particular focus, reached 125.4% and significantly drove sales.」

「Kids prizes for children continued to perform well in the prize business, with sales for the six-month consolidated period reaching 108.9% of the level in the same period of the previous year.」

「In the prize business, which is driving strong performance in the domestic business, company-exclusive prizes such as PAW Patrol, which is highly popular with young children, were successful during January, the peak sales season. As a result, prize-business same-store sales reached 117.0% of the level in the same period of the previous year and 118.5% of the level in the same period of 2019 in the fourth quarter, and 114.1% and 110.8%, respectively, for the full year.」

「The kids category, which is being strategically expanded within the prize business, continued to perform well. Third-quarter consolidated-period sales in kids prizes reached 118.4% of the same-store level in the same period of the previous year and 130.6% of the level in the same period of 2019. This was driven by the success of company-exclusive prizes, including those featuring the male artist group NCT127. Overall third-quarter consolidated-period sales in the prize business reached 113.1% of the same-store level in the same period of the previous year and 108.5% of the level in the same period of 2019.」

「In the core prize business, movie-related merchandise and company-exclusive prizes continued to perform steadily, driving overall sales. Sales in the prize business for the six-month consolidated period reached 116.4% of the same-store level in the same period of the previous year.」

「By segment, the prize business continued to perform well. The strengthened focused rollout of best-selling prizes, including company-exclusive prizes featuring popular characters, and prizes developed in collaboration with major confectionery manufacturers resulted in third-quarter consolidated-period sales in the prize business reaching 104.9% of the level two years earlier on a same-store basis.」

「The online crane game business was not affected by these factors. The company strengthened initiatives featuring collaborations with popular VTubers and the focused rollout of exclusive prizes featuring popular characters, as well as campaigns encouraging customers to spend time at home. Sales for the six-month consolidated period increased 78.0% year on year.」

「The online crane business was not affected by these factors. The company focused on exclusive prizes, including collaborations with popular VTubers, and campaigns encouraging customers to spend time at home. As a result, sales for the three-month consolidated period increased 92.3% year on year.」

「Morley Online, an online crane game launched as a new business in March last year, has been steadily increasing sales, with company-exclusive original prizes and prizes developed in collaboration with YouTubers proving popular.」

「However, the prize business temporarily fell below the same-day-of-week prior-year level in August and October, but recovered to 107.8% in November, driven by the success of prizes developed in collaboration with popular YouTubers. The company plans to continue developing successful original prizes and expand volumes.」

「In the domestic business, same-store sales growth for amusement machines was 2.7% for the six-month period. By segment, same-store sales growth in the prize business remained positive at 7.1%. The further expansion of limited-edition original prizes developed through collaborations with popular YouTubers, together with an increase in the number of related promotional videos on YouTube, contributed to higher sales. Cumulative views reached 91.8 million over six months from March to August, exceeding the total for the previous full year.」

「In the domestic business, amusement machine sales remained strong, with same-store sales growth of 6.2% in the first quarter. By segment, same-store sales growth in the prize business was 15.3%, continuing to increase substantially. The expanded introduction of company-exclusive original prizes developed through collaborations with confectionery manufacturers and popular YouTubers, together with the promotional effect of related videos on YouTube receiving more than 41 million cumulative views over the three months from March to May, contributed to higher sales.」

「In the domestic business, same-store sales growth for amusement machines was 11.3% in the nine-month consolidated period, remaining positive for 27 consecutive months since September 2015. By segment, same-store sales growth in the prize business remained in double-digit territory at 21.0%. This was largely driven by the expanded introduction of company-exclusive original prizes and web promotions actively pursued since last year, including YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and the company’s own app. In particular, videos by YouTubers featuring the company’s original projects, original prizes and original machines made a major contribution to customer acquisition, with cumulative views exceeding 53 million.」

「In the domestic business, same-store sales growth for amusement machines was 10.2% in the six-month consolidated period, remaining positive for 24 consecutive months since September 2015. By segment, same-store sales growth in the prize business remained in double digits at 19.2%. This was largely driven by the expanded introduction of company-exclusive original prizes, the use of YouTube and social media promotions.」

「This resulted from the rollout of original prizes developed in collaboration with confectionery manufacturers and others, as well as stronger promotions using the internet, including social media.」

「In addition to accelerating the horizontal sharing of successful practices through the company’s internal social network, an initiative implemented since last year, and improving the accuracy of prize selection through changes to the buying organization, the introduction of original game machines and prizes helped existing-store sales in the prize business rise 19.0% during the first half of the current fiscal year.」