Deterioration in Market Conditions Due to Cost-Consciousness, Diversifying Preferences, and Intensifying Sales Competition

「The food-service industry is also being strongly affected by consumers’ defensive attitudes toward spending, except in some segments benefiting from inbound demand. Although sales have shown some recovery as higher average spend per customer has offset difficulties in increasing customer numbers in formats focused on everyday use, the operating environment remains challenging, with continued increases in costs across the board, including elevated raw-material prices and logistics expenses and higher labor costs following increases in the minimum wage.」

「During the interim accounting period, inflationary pressure continued in the food service industry, and higher raw material and labor costs continued to weigh on corporate earnings. Although wages were rising, real wages declined because prices were rising faster, placing a heavy burden on households and resulting in a lackluster recovery in personal consumption. In the food service industry, sales improved to some extent as average spending per customer increased, but customer traffic did not increase substantially, and the challenging operating environment continued.」

「In the food service industry, customer traffic and sales showed signs of recovery. However, the operating environment remains challenging, as cost pressures continued across the board, including higher prices for key raw materials such as rice, higher energy costs and increased labor costs associated with wage growth.」

「During the interim accounting period, sales in the food service industry exceeded the previous year, supported by a recovery in personal consumption and strong inbound demand as economic activity normalized. However, the operating environment remained challenging due to higher raw material costs and utility expenses caused by global inflation, as well as higher labor costs resulting from labor shortages and increases in the minimum wage.」

「However, the operating environment remains challenging, with pronounced increases not only in raw material costs due to inflation against the backdrop of ongoing instability in international affairs and foreign exchange fluctuations, and in recruitment costs due to global inflation and labor shortages, but also in labor costs, which are rising nationwide, as well as in various other expenses.」

「During the cumulative third quarter, the food service industry saw demand for dining out, which had declined amid the COVID-19 pandemic, gradually showing signs of recovery toward pre-pandemic levels. However, the operating environment remains challenging, with pronounced increases not only in raw material costs due to inflation against the backdrop of ongoing instability in international affairs, and in labor costs due to global inflation and labor shortages in the post-COVID-19 environment, but also in various other expenses associated with these factors.」

「Meanwhile, the operating environment remains challenging amid surging raw-material costs resulting from global inflation and geopolitical instability, rising labor costs caused by labor shortages, and wage increases accompanying increases in the minimum wage. The upward trend in labor and recruiting costs has become pronounced.」

「Meanwhile, the operating environment remains challenging amid concerns over higher energy costs resulting from geopolitical instability, surging raw-material and utility costs due to global inflation, rising labor costs caused by labor shortages, and actual increases in wages accompanying increases in the minimum wage.」

「Meanwhile, the operating environment remains challenging amid concerns over higher energy costs resulting from geopolitical instability, surging raw-material and utility costs due to global inflation, and rising labor costs caused by labor shortages.」

「During the third quarter, customer visits in the food-service industry showed signs of gradually recovering as restrictions on economic activity were eased, although the impact of COVID-19 continued. However, procurement costs and utility costs rose amid global inflation originating from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, while hourly wages for part-time workers and recruiting costs to secure employees also increased, resulting in a marked rise in selling, general and administrative expenses.」

「During the second quarter, customer visits in the food-service industry showed signs of gradually recovering as restrictions on economic activity were eased while the impact of COVID-19 continued, but remained below pre-pandemic levels. Procurement costs and utility costs rose amid global inflation originating from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, while hourly wages for part-time workers and recruiting costs to secure employees also increased, resulting in a marked rise in selling, general and administrative expenses.」

「Signs of higher costs are emerging, including increased procurement expenses and utility costs, as well as higher hourly wages for part-time workers, owing to global inflation originating from Russia's invasion of Ukraine.」

「Conditions in the izakaya format, in particular, remain challenging within the food-service industry.」

「If the government or local authorities issue requests to shorten operating hours, refrain from serving alcoholic beverages or temporarily close locations in response to COVID-19 infection conditions, or if consumer sentiment toward dining out remains subdued, customer visits may decline and affect the group's business performance.」

「During the second quarter, customer visits in the food-service industry fell sharply because of business closures and shorter operating hours resulting from measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 since the previous fiscal year, and the extremely challenging operating environment continued.」

「During the first quarter, the food-service industry faced an extremely challenging operating environment. Requests from the government and local authorities to close temporarily, shorten operating hours and limit the hours for serving alcoholic beverages, issued to prevent the spread of COVID-19 since the previous fiscal year, resulted in operations under restrictions and reduced the number of operating days and operating hours.」

「Conditions in the izakaya format, in particular, remain challenging within the food-service industry.」

「During the third quarter, customer visits in the food-service industry fell sharply because of business closures and shorter operating hours resulting from measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 since the previous fiscal year, and the extremely challenging operating environment continued.」

「During the second quarter, customer visits in the food-service industry fell sharply because of business closures and shorter operating hours resulting from measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 since the previous fiscal year, and the extremely challenging operating environment continued.」

「During the first quarter, the food-service industry faced an extremely challenging operating environment. In response to requests from the government and local authorities to refrain from going out to prevent the spread of COVID-19, customer visits fell sharply because of business closures and shorter operating hours. Although some recovery followed, the trend continued during the quarter.」

「In addition, following the nationwide spread of COVID-19 and the government's declaration of a state of emergency in April, all locations were temporarily closed. Although operations resumed after the declaration was lifted in May, requests to refrain from going out and to shorten operating hours to prevent the spread of COVID-19 have resulted in an even more challenging operating environment.」

「In addition, the nationwide spread of COVID-19 led to requests for people to refrain from going out across society, resulting in lower sales in the izakaya industry due to a substantial decline in customer visits.」

「During the second quarter, the food-service industry continued to face a challenging operating environment. Persistent consumer preferences for frugality and low prices, rising labor-related costs amid labor shortages, surging food prices and intense competition among companies across industries and business formats weighed on conditions.」

「During the first quarter, the food-service industry faced an even more challenging operating environment due to rising labor costs amid labor shortages, the risk of stagnant consumer sentiment ahead of an increase in the consumption tax rate, and higher raw-material prices resulting from adverse weather.」

「In addition to persistently high raw-material prices caused by higher logistics costs and adverse weather, and rising labor costs resulting from the chronic labor shortage, competition to attract customers from other industries and business formats has intensified further, and the operating environment remains even more challenging.」

「In the izakaya industry, the competitive environment surrounding the group has become even more intense. Customer visits have been declining as younger people increasingly drink less alcohol, labor costs have risen as supply and demand have tightened in the recruitment market for new graduates, mid-career hires and part-time workers, and new business formats have entered the izakaya industry. The operating environment remains challenging.」

「During the second quarter, the food-service industry continued to face a challenging operating environment. Labor-related costs rose amid labor shortages associated with the economic recovery, utility costs increased because of higher electricity rates, food prices surged, and competition among companies across industries and business formats remained intense.」

「During the first quarter, the food-service industry faced a further challenging operating environment. Labor costs and recruiting-related expenses rose amid labor shortages associated with the economic recovery, utility costs increased because of higher electricity rates, raw-material prices rose due to adverse weather including typhoons, and competition with other industries and business formats intensified further as consumer behavior changed with the diversification of preferences.」

「As consumer preferences in the food-service industry become increasingly diverse, customers are becoming more selective. In addition to rising raw-material prices and a chronic labor shortage, intensifying competition with other industries and business formats means that the operating environment remains challenging.」

「The food-service industry continues to face challenging conditions, as food prices remain elevated and labor costs have surged, while competition to attract customers across business formats has intensified further.」

「In the food-service industry, the operating environment remains challenging, as labor-related costs have risen with the economic recovery, food prices have surged, and competition among companies across industries and business formats remains intense.」

「However, in the food-service industry, the operating environment remains challenging, as labor-related costs have risen with the economic recovery, raw-material prices have increased amid uncertain weather, consumer behavior has changed as preferences have diversified, and competition among companies across industries and business formats has intensified.」

「Although some business formats are performing well, the environment surrounding the food-service industry has become even more challenging. In the full-service izakaya format, the trend of sales falling below the previous year's level has not improved, owing to younger people drinking less alcohol, increasingly diverse consumer preferences and fewer customer visits.」

「The food-service industry continues to face challenging conditions, including increasingly diverse consumer preferences, continued frugal consumer behavior and intensifying competition for sales.」

「In the food-service industry, the operating environment remains challenging, as labor-related costs have risen with the economic recovery, food prices have surged, and competition among companies across industries and business formats remains intense.」

「In the food-service industry, the operating environment remains challenging, as labor-related costs have risen with the economic recovery, raw-material prices have increased amid uncertain weather, consumer behavior has changed as preferences have diversified, and competition among companies across industries and business formats has intensified.」

「The operating environment in the food-service industry remains challenging, amid increasingly diverse consumer preferences, continued frugal consumer behavior and intensifying competition for sales associated with these trends.」