Strengthening differentiated products, proprietary brands and market creation

「Kobundo Co., Ltd. advertised and promoted its products through event exhibitions nationwide, including the “49th Latest Labor-Saving Bookbinding Equipment Exhibition” last October and Print Doors 2026, the “62nd Kobundo New Year Equipment Exhibition,” in January of this year, thereby strengthening sales activities. In the development and sale of new products, it began selling the on-demand corrugated-box converting machine “KBD AUTO SLOTTER.”」

「Kobundo Co., Ltd. strengthened sales activities by advertising and promoting its products through event exhibitions nationwide, including trade shows held in Fukuoka in July, Tokyo and Kanazawa in August, and Gifu in September, for a total of 14 events during the first half. In the development and sale of new products, it began selling the on-demand corrugated-box converting machine “KBD AUTO SLOTTER.”」

「As a result, materials sales remained firm and machinery sales performed well, including sales of large machines, leading to higher sales. Profit also increased because of the effect of higher sales and adequate sales of higher-margin proprietary-brand products. As a result, solution sales-segment sales were ¥11,849 million, up 12.2% from the previous fiscal year, and operating profit was ¥259 million, up 55.7%.」

「We began business activities in the Shikoku region through the Tokushima Sales Office, which was established in March of this year. We also actively exhibited at trade shows held nationwide and strengthened advertising and promotional activities. As a result, both materials sales and machinery sales increased.」

「As social and economic activity normalized, we strengthened efforts to capture recovering equipment-investment demand and develop new customers. As a result, materials sales were roughly unchanged year on year, while machinery sales remained strong. Profit increased because of the effect of higher sales and strong sales of higher-margin proprietary-brand products, as well as our efforts to pass on soaring purchase prices to customers through careful negotiations and implement thorough cost reductions. As a result, merchandising-segment sales were ¥2,627 million, up 10.8% year on year, and operating profit was ¥63 million, up 290.4%.」

「Business conditions in the merchandising business continued to recover as social and economic activity normalized. Although the market environment remained challenging, as in the printing business, we used our nationwide network of locations as a leading general trading company specializing in printing-related products to identify customer needs and provide thorough, attentive follow-up to increase market share. We also actively captured equipment-investment demand using the Monozukuri Subsidy Program, developed new customers, and pursued advertising and promotional activities by exhibiting at events nationwide. As a result, both materials sales and machinery sales increased.」

「We also actively pursued advertising and promotional activities by developing new customers and exhibiting at events nationwide. As a result, both materials sales and machinery sales increased.」

「Although the merchandising business faced a challenging market environment, as did the printing business, we sought to increase market share by using our nationwide network of locations as a leading general trading company specializing in printing-related products to identify customer needs and provide thorough, attentive follow-up. We also sought to secure sales and profit by differentiating ourselves from competitors through our overall capabilities, including developing new customers in other industries, strengthening sales of higher-margin proprietary-brand products, and developing the personnel to support these activities.」

「Although the merchandising business faced a challenging market environment, as did the printing business, we sought to secure sales and profit by differentiating ourselves from competitors through our overall capabilities as a leading general trading company specializing in printing-related products. We used our nationwide network of locations to identify customer needs and provide thorough, attentive follow-up to increase market share, developed new customers including those in other industries, strengthened sales of higher-margin proprietary-brand products, and developed the personnel to support these activities.」

「Although the merchandising segment, or merchandising business, faced a challenging environment, we aimed to secure sales and profit by differentiating ourselves from competitors through our overall capabilities, including identifying customer needs and providing thorough, attentive follow-up to increase market share, developing new customers including those in other industries, strengthening sales of higher-margin proprietary-brand products, and developing the personnel to support these activities.」

「The merchandising business faced a challenging market environment, as did the printing business. As a leading general trading company specializing in printing-related products, we actively used our nationwide network of locations to propose products with higher added value and improved quality and environmental performance, strengthen sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and pursue new-customer acquisition activities.」

「The merchandising business faced a challenging market environment, as did the printing business. As a leading general trading company specializing in printing-related products, we actively used our nationwide network of locations to propose products with higher added value and improved quality and environmental performance, strengthen sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and pursue new-customer acquisition activities.」

「The merchandising segment, or merchandising business, faced extremely challenging conditions because of the contraction in print media resulting from the progress of digitalization, as did the printing business. Nevertheless, we actively proposed products with higher added value and improved quality and environmental performance, strengthened sales of higher-margin proprietary-brand machinery, and pursued new-customer acquisition activities.」

「In the merchandising business, we actively proposed products with higher added value and improved quality and environmental performance, strengthened sales of higher-margin proprietary-brand machinery, and pursued new-customer acquisition activities.」

「In the merchandising business, we actively proposed products with higher added value and improved quality and environmental performance, strengthened sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and pursued new-customer acquisition activities. Materials sales and machinery sales both performed well, partly because we captured front-loaded demand ahead of the consumption tax increase. Profit also rose substantially year on year, owing to the positive effect of higher sales, steady sales of the higher-margin proprietary-brand machinery, and reductions in expenses such as advertising and repairs. As a result, merchandising-business sales were ¥6,614 million, up 4.5% year on year, and operating profit was ¥169 million, up 131.6%.」

「In the merchandising business, we actively proposed products with higher added value and improved quality and environmental performance, strengthened sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and pursued new-customer acquisition activities. As a result, both materials sales and machinery sales remained firm.」

「In the merchandising business, we actively proposed products that reduced costs or improved quality and environmental performance, strengthened sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and pursued new-customer acquisition activities.」

「In the merchandising business, we actively proposed products that reduced costs or improved quality and environmental performance, strengthened sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and pursued new-customer acquisition activities.」

「In the merchandising business, we actively proposed products that reduced costs or improved quality and environmental performance, strengthened sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and pursued new-customer acquisition activities. Although sales of materials declined, the review of applications under the Monozukuri Subsidy Program, which had been delayed beyond initial expectations, progressed in machinery sales, and we focused on capturing equipment-investment demand using the program.」

「In the merchandising business, we actively proposed products with higher added value and improved quality and environmental performance, strengthened sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and pursued new-customer acquisition activities. However, in machinery sales, the review of applications under the Monozukuri Subsidy Program took longer than expected, and the gross margin declined.」

「Although sales of printing materials such as ink and printing plates struggled because of the contraction in print media, we actively pursued sales of machinery with advantages in quality, environmental performance and efficiency, strengthened sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and focused on developing new customers.」

「In the merchandising business, we actively proposed products with higher added value and improved quality and environmental performance, strengthened sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and pursued new-customer acquisition activities, with the aim of recovering from the fiscal year ended March 2017, which was affected by the backlash from the unusually strong demand for machinery generated by tax incentives in the fiscal year ended March 2016.」

「In the merchandising business, we actively proposed products with higher added value and improved quality and environmental performance, strengthened sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and pursued new-customer acquisition activities, with the aim of recovering from the fiscal year ended March 2017, which was affected by the backlash from the unusually strong demand for machinery generated by tax incentives in the fiscal year ended March 2016.」

「In the merchandising business, we actively proposed products with higher added value and improved quality and environmental performance, strengthened sales of proprietary-brand machinery, and pursued new-customer acquisition activities, with the aim of recovering from the fiscal year ended March 2017, which was affected by the backlash from the unusually strong demand for printing-machine replacements generated by tax incentives in the fiscal year ended March 2016. As a result, merchandising-segment sales were ¥2,811 million, down 0.9% year on year, while operating profit rose 54.5% to ¥69 million, owing to increased sales of proprietary-brand machinery and an improved gross margin on general machinery, among other factors.」

「In the merchandising segment, we worked to further strengthen sales of equipment other than high-priced printing presses and printing materials, while minimizing the backlash from demand for equipment upgrades at printing companies created by the Productivity Improvement Equipment Investment Promotion Tax Incentive, which provided a tailwind in the fiscal year ended March 2016. We also pursued product proposals that would create higher value added and new markets for printing-related businesses or improve quality and environmental performance, along with new-customer acquisition activities, and conducted various sales-promotion activities, including expanding sales of proprietary-brand products and disseminating information through exhibitions and seminars.」

「In the merchandising segment, we worked to further strengthen sales of printing materials, propose products that would enhance the value added of and create markets for printing-related businesses, propose products that would improve quality and environmental performance, and acquire new customers, while minimizing the backlash from demand for equipment upgrades at customer printing companies created by the Productivity Improvement Equipment Investment Promotion Tax Incentive, which provided a tailwind in the fiscal year ended March 2016. We also pursued various sales-promotion activities, including expanding sales of our proprietary-brand products and disseminating information through exhibitions and seminars.」

「In the merchandising segment, to minimise the backlash from demand for equipment replacement by customer printing companies created by the tax incentive programme promoting investment in productivity-enhancing equipment, which provided a tailwind in the fiscal year ended March 2016, we further strengthened sales of printing materials, promoted proposals for products that contribute to adding value and creating markets in printing-related businesses, as well as differentiated products offering improved quality and environmental performance, and pursued new customer acquisition. We also strengthened the development of proprietary-brand products and promoted information to revitalise printing companies through trade shows, seminars and other events, thereby strengthening sales promotion activities.」

「In the merchandising business, we promoted proposals for products that contribute to adding value and creating markets in printing-related businesses, as well as differentiated products offering improved quality and environmental performance, and activities to acquire new customers. We also strengthened the development of proprietary-brand products and promoted information to revitalise printing companies through trade shows, seminars and other events, thereby strengthening sales promotion activities.」