Discount-store competition is intensifying in Aichi’s Nagoya Chaya area. Lopia has opened at Nagoya Chayamachi Mall, while Kan-esue is also developing small-format stores, creating a situation in which 3 formats compete within a 600m radius.
In a redeveloped commercial area of the port town, Aeon Mall, Trial and Cosmos Pharmaceutical have clustered within a 600m radius, and Lopia entered the market in January this year. Competition is intensifying among national discount-store chains, general merchandise stores and low-price drugstores. On a weekday in mid-August, foot traffic in the area suggested that the three-way competition was spreading.
Lopia is taking advantage of its location near Nagoya Port to open at Nagoya Chayamachi Mall, a commercial facility in the Chaya-Shinden land readjustment area. The store is a large-format outlet of approximately 806 tsubo, themed around a port-town marche, with features including a mural of Lopita that evoke the vitality of a port town.
Kan-esue opened the small-format Ferna store in the area in July. The Big Express has also opened approximately 1 km away, drawing attention to changes in the competitive landscape among the 3 formats: discount stores, general merchandise stores and low-price drugstores.
Going forward, readers will be watching how the local trade area is reshaped by the entry of Lopia and Kan-esue, and how the competitors’ ability to attract customers develops.