Challenging Consumer Environment Driven by Deflation, Thrift and Preference for Low Prices
First written in FY2017-Q1. 12 of 20 entries say "Restated". Latest entry: 2026-08-12.
Satoh& moved to the "Worse" side of this theme in 2025, 5 years after the typical company in this theme (2020).
The whole theme swung hardest in 2020: 12 of 20 companies on the "Worse" side.
8 other companies' latest entry also says "Worsened".
- 2026-08-12WorsenedEarnings
「物価高騰の長期化から、消費者の生活防衛意識は依然として高く、購買行動における選別消費や低価格志向が一層強まるなど、足元の消費マインドは弱い動きとなっております。」
物価高騰を背景に、選別消費・低価格志向の一層の強まりと消費マインドの弱さを記載している。 - FY2026WorsenedAnnual report
「The effects of rising prices nevertheless persist, and consumers’ thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices are expected to continue, while increasingly selective consumption focused not only on price but also on quality, convenience and value is expected to become more pronounced.」
The company expects thrift-consciousness and demand for low prices to continue against a backdrop of rising prices, with increasingly selective consumption focused on quality, convenience and value. - FY2026-H1WorsenedAnnual report
「In the retail sector, consumer sentiment appears to be weakening because of the continued rise in rice prices and overall prices since last year. Concerns about prolonged price increases have further strengthened consumers’ thrift-consciousness.」
The company states that continued increases in rice prices and overall prices have weakened consumer sentiment and further strengthened thrift-consciousness, adding to the severity of the consumer environment. - FY2025-H1RestatedAnnual report
「As the effects of the novel coronavirus pandemic have subsided and socioeconomic activity has moved toward normalization, the employment and income environment has improved. However, the business environment remains challenging because continued high prices have increased domestic consumers’ thrift-consciousness.」
While describing improvements in socioeconomic activity and the employment and income environment, the company continues to identify consumers’ increased thrift-consciousness caused by high prices as a challenge. - FY2024-Q3RestatedAnnual report
「Although customer numbers are increasing, the challenging environment continues as rapid price increases further strengthen consumers’ deeply entrenched defensive behavior, including their preference for low prices.」
While describing the recovery in customer numbers, the company continues to identify the increasing preference for low prices and consumer defensive behavior against a backdrop of rapid price increases as challenges in the consumer environment. - FY2024-Q1Reappears explicitly, with consumer defensive behavior becoming more pronouncedAnnual report
「Although customer numbers are steadily recovering, the challenging environment continues as rapid price increases further strengthen consumers’ deeply entrenched defensive behavior, including their preference for low prices.」
The preference for low prices and consumer defensive behavior, which had not been explicitly mentioned for a period, are described again, with the company explaining that these tendencies have become more pronounced against a backdrop of rapid price increases. - FY2020-Q3DroppedAnnual report
「In the food industry, we consider the soaring costs of raw materials and logistics, along with higher labor rates due to labor shortages, to be management challenges for the industry as a whole, and the outlook has remained challenging.」
This filing contains no explicit reference to the consumer thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices or stagnant real income growth described in previous filings. - FY2019WorsenedAnnual report
「Although the employment and income environment has improved, the effects have been offset by accelerating price increases, led by higher energy prices. Consumption continues to be depressed, and the business environment surrounding the company is expected to remain challenging.」
While recognizing the improvement in the employment and income environment, the company provides greater detail on the challenging consumer environment, citing accelerating price increases, including higher energy prices, as continuing to depress consumption. - FY2019-Q3RestatedAnnual report
「In the food industry, consumers remain strongly inclined to economize and seek lower prices as real incomes stagnate due to rising prices, while the challenging environment continues, with logistics and fuel costs increasing amid labor shortages.」
The company continues to describe consumers’ deeply entrenched thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices against a backdrop of stagnant real income growth caused by rising prices. - FY2019-Q2RestatedAnnual report
「In the food industry, consumers remain strongly inclined to economize and seek lower prices as real incomes stagnate due to rising prices, while the challenging environment continues, with logistics and fuel costs increasing amid labor shortages.」
The company continues to describe the situation in which stagnant real income growth caused by rising prices has left consumers’ thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices deeply entrenched. - FY2019-Q1RestatedAnnual report
「In the food industry, consumers remain strongly inclined to economize and seek lower prices as real incomes stagnate due to rising prices, while the challenging environment continues, with logistics and fuel costs increasing amid labor shortages.」
The company continues to describe consumers’ deeply entrenched thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices against a backdrop of stagnant real income growth caused by rising prices. - FY2018RestatedAnnual report
「In the food industry to which our Group belongs, the income environment improved as corporate earnings recovered. However, because real incomes have struggled to grow amid unfavorable weather and rising prices, consumers remain strongly inclined to save and seek lower prices, driven by anxiety about the future, and we believe the business environment remains challenging.」
While noting the improvement in the income environment, the company continues to identify stagnant real income growth caused by adverse weather and rising prices, together with thrift-consciousness and demand for low prices, as factors contributing to a challenging consumer environment. - FY2018-Q3RestatedAnnual report
「Although the employment and income environment has improved in the food industry in which the group operates, stagnant real income growth caused by adverse weather and rising prices, together with concerns about the future, has left consumers’ thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices deeply entrenched. The company believes that the outlook remains challenging.」
While noting the improvement in the employment and income environment, the company continues to identify stagnant real income growth caused by adverse weather and rising prices, concerns about the future, and thrift-consciousness and demand for low prices as factors contributing to a challenging consumer environment. - FY2018-Q2RestatedAnnual report
「Although the employment and income environment has improved in the food industry in which the group operates, consumers’ thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices remain deeply entrenched because of sluggish growth in household disposable income and concerns about the future. The company recognizes that the environment remains challenging.」
While noting the improvement in the employment and income environment, the company recognizes that a challenging consumer environment continues, with thrift-consciousness and demand for low prices remaining deeply entrenched amid sluggish growth in disposable income and concerns about the future. - FY2018-Q1RestatedAnnual report
「Although the employment and income environment has improved in the food industry in which the group operates, owing to the recovery in corporate earnings, consumers’ thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices remain deeply entrenched because of sluggish growth in household disposable income and concerns about the future. The company recognizes that the environment remains challenging.」
The company recognizes that the challenging consumer environment will continue, with thrift-consciousness and demand for low prices remaining deeply entrenched amid sluggish growth in disposable income and concerns about the future. - FY2017RestatedAnnual report
「In the food industry, consumers’ thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices remain deeply entrenched because of stagnant growth in real personal income. Deflationary conditions remain evident, consumer sentiment continues to be sluggish, and the challenging environment persisted.」
The company continues to describe stagnant real income growth, thrift-consciousness, demand for low prices, deflation and sluggish consumer sentiment as factors contributing to a challenging consumer environment. - FY2017-Q2RestatedAnnual report
「In the food industry, deflationary conditions remain evident and consumer sentiment continues to be sluggish. Consumers’ thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices remain deeply entrenched, and the challenging environment continues.」
The company continues to describe deflation, sluggish consumer sentiment, and a challenging consumer environment characterized by thrift-consciousness and demand for low prices. - FY2017-Q1First statedAnnual report
「In the food industry, deflationary conditions remain evident and consumer sentiment continues to be sluggish. Consumers’ thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices remain deeply entrenched, and the challenging environment continues.」
For the first time, the company explicitly identified deflation, sluggish consumer sentiment, and consumers’ thrift-consciousness and preference for low prices as a challenging business environment for the food industry.