Against the backdrop of a recovery in the department store market, Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings achieved substantial increases in sales and profit in its first-quarter results for the current fiscal year. The company is modernizing clienteling and shifting toward an "individual-customer business," demonstrating an improved earnings structure centered on high-end consumers.
Japan's domestic department store market had been dismissed by some as a "has-been" business amid the expansion of online shopping and changes in consumer behavior, but Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings has made a strong recovery. Total sales for the first quarter of the current fiscal year reached ¥320.7 billion, up 6.5% year on year, while operating profit rose 20.6% to ¥18.9 billion. Both figures marked record highs.
The company is strengthening purchases by affluent customers as the foundation for high-end spending, with jewelry and watches performing particularly well. Demand for tangible assets as a means of diversifying assets is also providing a tailwind. In line with this trend, the company is rigorously pursuing full-price sales rather than relying on traditional discounting.
The initiative to transform clienteling into a modern business model has become one of the company's growth drivers. Isetan Mitsukoshi is strengthening systems that combine customer data and AI with clienteling staff, buyers and store associates, enabling the organization as a whole to use information on individual preferences and lifestyles.
Under its "individual-customer business" model, the company identifies customers through cards and apps, makes proposals based on their purchase histories and preferences, and plans to approach a broad range of customers beyond the affluent segment.
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