J. FRONT RETAILING released preliminary October 2026 sales figures for its department store business. Daimaru Matsuzakaya's duty-free sales increased 15.8% year on year, or 20.2% excluding the Umeda store.
Total sales at Daimaru Matsuzakaya department stores in October 2026 increased 0.9% year on year, accelerating to a 4.5% increase excluding the Umeda store. Sales for the department store business as a whole increased 1.9% year on year, or 5.2% excluding the Umeda store. These results were supported by improvements in sales to commercial customers and duty-free sales.
Total duty-free sales at Daimaru Matsuzakaya increased 15.8% year on year, or 20.2% excluding the Umeda store. Customer numbers decreased 0.7%, but excluding Umeda, customer numbers increased 7.4% and average spend per customer increased 16.7%, or 12.0% excluding Umeda, highlighting the growth of the duty-free business.
In the department store business, 12 of 12 or more stores exceeded the previous year's results. In particular, the Shinsaibashi, Kyoto, Sapporo and Ueno stores, along with Hakata Daimaru, recorded double-digit increases. The Umeda store posted a significantly larger decline than the previous year, while the Nagoya store saw a partial decline.
Looking ahead, duty-free sales, customer numbers and average spend per customer are generally increasing at stores other than Umeda, suggesting that structural improvements, including double-digit growth at individual stores, may continue.