Weak Seasonal Demand and the Impact of Weather on Merchandising Cycles

「The apparel industry also remained in a difficult business environment due to demand fluctuations caused by weather conditions and the continued consumer tendency to economize.」

「In the second half, the prolonged late-summer heat, which lasted longer than the previous year, caused a slow start for autumn and winter products, making October difficult. From November onward, however, sales continued to exceed the previous year as temperatures fell.」

「Purchasing behavior also remained cautious amid unsettled weather and a growing tendency to economize in response to higher prices.」

「The apparel and fashion industry faced a challenging operating environment. Customer traffic recovered following the easing of restrictions, but the industry was affected by high raw material costs, a weaker yen, prolonged late-summer heat and a mild winter, while concerns about weaker consumer sentiment due to inflation remained.」

「In the apparel and fashion industry as well, customer traffic has recovered following the easing of restrictions, but the outlook remains uncertain due to soaring raw material prices, concerns about inflation caused by sharp exchange-rate fluctuations and other factors, and the effects of climate change.」

「Many of the apparel and fashion goods handled by the group are highly seasonal, and their sales may be affected by weather conditions such as cool summers, prolonged rain and mild winters. In addition, if shopping centers or logistics functions in areas where the group operates stores suffer serious damage from large-scale natural disasters such as earthquakes, significantly constraining business activities, the group's results may be affected.」

「Many of the apparel and fashion goods handled by the group are highly seasonal, and their sales may be affected by weather conditions such as cool summers, prolonged rain and mild winters.」

「In the first quarter, in addition to colors, the company introduced products with materials and sleeve lengths that anticipated the season. However, insufficient product variety to respond to temperature changes and insufficient quantities of products suitable for actual demand, among other factors, prevented it from increasing same-store sales. Same-store sales for the cumulative first quarter were 87.7% of the year-earlier period, significantly affecting overall sales.」

「By brand, sales at all 3 brands, ikka, LBC and VENCE EXCHANGE, were below the previous year. The company was unable to respond fully to the higher temperatures throughout the third quarter, and its inability to increase customer traffic, partly due to typhoons and the earthquake, also had an impact.」

「Sales were affected by unstable weather in early spring and heavy rain and typhoons from July onward, which affected customer traffic.」

「However, from April onward, the Company was unable to respond to unstable weather changes. Although it strengthened promotions for Golden Week and Mother's Day, customer traffic failed to grow and the Company struggled. In addition, early-summer and summer products fell substantially short of plan, disrupting the merchandising cycle. As a result, same-store sales for the nine-month consolidated period were 96.9% of the previous year's level.」

「Many of the apparel and fashion goods handled by the group are highly seasonal, and their sales may be affected by weather conditions such as cool summers, prolonged rain and mild winters.」

「However, the company was unable to respond fully when a temporary rise in temperatures in mid-October slowed sales of autumn merchandise and the subsequent decline in temperatures caused demand to shift rapidly to early-winter and winter products. In womenswear in particular, although bottoms performed well throughout the month, the delayed switch to winter outerwear was compounded by temporary production delays at subcontracted factories resulting from China's environmental policies and the resulting shipment delays.」

「In addition, lower temperatures caused by unsettled weather north of the Kanto region and a succession of rainy days reduced customer traffic. Sales were 83.0% of the year-earlier period, significantly affecting first-half results.」

「Sales of spring merchandise struggled in March, partly because temperatures remained low.」

「Many of the apparel and fashion goods handled by the group are highly seasonal, and their sales may be affected by weather conditions such as cool summers, prolonged rain and mild winters.」

「No new business or other risks arose during the nine months ended [the current third quarter]. There have also been no material changes to the business and other risks described in the annual securities report for the previous fiscal year.」

「After struggling to sell winter-season products, including cold-weather outerwear, from November last year onward, particularly as ikka fell substantially short of plan, the company undertook a fundamental review of its merchandising plan, including its product mix and purchasing controls.」

「Demand for spring merchandise was weak in March, and the company shifted to its early-summer merchandise campaign in April.」