Japanese Stores See Sharp Sales Drop

TOKYO — Japanese retailers saw large drops in their March sales, due mainly to high comparative bases caused by rush buying last March ahead of an increase in the national consumption tax that went into place in April. Retailers were also not helped by the fact that there were two fewer weekend days or holidays this March compared with last year. Fast Retailing said Thursday that same-store sales among its Uniqlo doors in Japan fell 3 percent compared with the same month last year. Customer numbers were down 10.5 percent, but the average purchase per customer increased by 8.4 percent. “While the weather was slightly warmer than the previous year and the overall sales trend held closely to the previous year’s levels, the fact that consumers had two fewer public and weekend holidays to shop impacted on the final same-store sales figure,” the company said. After closing six and opening four stores in March, including a 35,500-square-foot location in the northern city of Sapporo, Fast Retailing currently has 810 Uniqlo stores in Japan. Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings said that sales among its nine department stores in the Tokyo metropolitan area fell 14 percent year-on-year in March. This was the largest monthly sales drop in over

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