What: Chinese and U.S. shoppers help sales recover to pre-pandemic levels, consultancy Bain said.

Why is it important: The more likely scenario is for a full rebound in 2022.

Bain now sees a 30% probability that sales of high-end handbags, clothes and jewellery will return to or exceed their 2019 level of EUR 280 billion (USD 340 billion) this year, depending on how quickly vaccines are rolled out and tourism picks up. Its more likely scenario is for a full rebound in 2022, earlier than predicted.

Soaring sales in China and a stronger-than-expected U.S. rebound helped revenues bounce back sharply in the first quarter of 2021. Europe is lagging behind, hampered by a slower vaccination campaign and restrictions on tourism.

Bain also said that as people moved to countryside homes and worked remotely, sales in second-tier cities often went better than in big luxury capitals like New York or Milan - a factor brands will have to consider as they review their footprint.

And while handbags, leather goods and jewellery have been driving the recovery, spending on clothes, make up and perfumes is expected to pick up too as lockdowns ease and people resume going out.

Global luxury sales could return to pre-Covid levels this year

What: Saks.com received asset-based credit arranged by Bank of America and a secured term loan arrangement by Pathlight Capital.

Why it is important: The capital will allow Saks.com to become even more competitive in the luxury e-commerce market.

Saks is preparing for growth in its new life as an independent e-commerce business, separate from the brick-and-mortar origins. Although they are two separate entities, the digital Saks assures that it will still have a seamless connection to the Saks Fifth store chain.

With the new facility and term loan, Saks hopes to use the new capital to increase its stronghold in the growing e-commerce luxury market.

Saks.com generates USD 1 billion in sales and was able to pick up younger shoppers amid the pandemic. The retailers indicated that there will be some investments in building a hybrid retail and marketplace platform.

The digital Saks raises $465M in debt capital to fuel growth 

What: Online rental businesses are penetrating the mainstream further by venturing into white label solutions.

Why is it important: Fashion rental businesses were one of lockdown’s most unlikely winners, Hurr being one of the leaders and bringing Selfridges on board.

Rental pioneers including Hurr, On Loan and My Wardrobe HQ are all launching white label solutions this month, and everyone from major department stores, such as Selfridges, to contemporary brands, are jumping on board.

“The idea is that we’re powering the tech and the operations. It’s completely hands-off from the brand’s point of view, we do everything from using AI to power the smart-tagging of products to dry cleaning. Instead of having to invest millions of pounds into building their own rental operations after the pandemic, we’re telling retailers or brands ‘We’ve done it, and we can do it for you,'” said Hurr founder Victoria Prew. Selfridges is her first client.

Hurr has so far operated on its own platform, using both the peer-to-peer model and also stock from brands, which helps them to offer a greater variety and more depth of stock than a peer-to-peer only model.

In 2019, the company launched its first Selfridges concession and it was a hit. Ahead of Christmas, thousands of women used the service to rent festive pieces, according to Prew. It now has a permanent space within the department. Over the last year, the company had 2 million hits on its own site with people booking their rentals up to four months in advance, while still in lockdown, and driving what she said have been record revenues.

My Wardrobe HQ is another London-based re-commerce business debuting My Ventures, its own take on white label solutions across both rental and resale, to allow for bespoke solutions. “For some brands, rental is attractive as it provides a more accessible price point to a new Millennial audience, as well as a sustainable solution and marketing narrative. For others, resale is a more appropriate solution,” said Natalia Pawlak, the business’ COO.

“Blockchain is imperative for authenticity — we’re in a new age with all the buzz around NFT solutions from luxury brands such as Gucci. Gone are the days of certificates in boxes. Our blockchain solution solidifies item ownership and also provides the brands with automated recurring revenue which they haven’t seen before,” she added.

If the rental market is going to take the next step and go mass, brands and retailers will need to get more involved and put their own stock up for rent, according to Prew. Luxury players are now starting to see the opportunity too with discussions “coming forward five years,” said Prew, who thinks there’s no reason for apprehension – only a “mass market opportunity” to unlock a younger consumer base of environmentally conscious Gen Z-ers and Millennials. Rental is also more focused on trend or occasion pieces versus the brand classics customers prefer to invest in, so adopting the model won’t “cannibalise primary market sales” in any way.

Luxury Fashion’s Rental Market Is Ready for Takeoff 

What: Adidas collaborates with Allbirds to learn more about sustainable alternatives

Why it is important: The key to lower carbon impact might lie in collaboration, not competition.

In 2016, Allbirds changed the manufacturing landscape with the introduction of its eco-friendly sneaker.

The company has teamed up with Adidas to release a new shoe as the latest entry in Adidas’ Futurecraft line of technologically advanced apparel. The Futurecraft.Footprint is a high-performance running shoe with a far smaller environmental impact.

Adidas and Allbirds evaluated the entire manufacturing process to reduce carbon emissions, starting with the materials. The shoe is made from 70% recycled polyester and 30% Tencel, a fiber material made from wood pulp. The shoe only comes in pure white because dyeing is also an energy intensive process.

The shoes will go on sale to the public in the fall.

Adidas and Allbirds Team Up to Make Sustainable Running Shoes

What: The retailer's in-store traffic continues to grow, even as nonessential retailers come back to life.

Why is it important: Thanks to drive-up services and online orders fulfilled in store, physical retail accounted for over 95% of total sales this quarter alone.

The retailer revealed quarterly earnings, improving across all channels and logging more than USD 2 billion in profits during the last three months. “Our stores were the star of the show this quarter, with Q1 comp-store sales increasing by 18%, fuelled almost entirely by traffic,” Brian Cornell, chairman and CEO of Target.

And as consumers continued to visit Target’s stores, same-day services also continued to rise, up more than 90% during the quarter. Drive-up services had the biggest growth, up 123% during the quarter, year-over-year.

The company’s total revenues topped USD 24.1 billion for the three-month period ending 1 May, up from USD 19.6 billion a year earlier. First quarter comparable sales grew 22.9% during the quarter, with store comparable sales up 18%, year-over-year. Digital comparable sales also continued to grow, up 50% in the last three month, compared with a year earlier. That’s on top of the 141% growth during 2020’s first quarter.

By category, Cornell said there was comp sales growth in apparel, home and hardlines during the quarter. Apparel sales rose 60%, thanks to a mix of Target’s own brands and partnership with national brands.

Target Stores Remain Center of Its Omnichannel Universe 

What: Located on central Piazza Fiume, the store will be subjected to a radical remodeling to be fully disclosed in August 2023.

Why is it important: Mostly relying on local customers, the store will focus on the food hall, as well as on women’s shoes and beauty.

According to Rinascente’s business plan, Roma Piazza Fiume, which will host the collections of more than 500 brands, will generate EUR 50 million of net sales within five years from the end of the renovation.

Building owner Prelios SGR revealed the renovation agreement with Rinascente to restore the building was signed in April 2020, during the first lockdown. Despite Rome certainly being one of the most important tourist destinations in the world, the store on Piazza Fiume mainly relies on local consumers, which account for 98% of its around one million annual visitors.

The renovation, which will require an investment of EUR 37 million (EUR 23 million will be paid by Prelios SGR’s Megas fund, Rinascente will disburse EUR 9 million and concession brands will invest EUR 5 million to decorate their spaces), will address the facade, the interiors and the outdoor space around the building, including a garden.

A big focus will be put on the food hall on the last floor, as well as on women’s shoes and beauty. As the company traditionally does with its stores, Rinascente assigned the renovations of the levels to different architecture firms in order to create customized and diverse spaces.

In June 2020, the company, launched its e-commerce, which is currently available only for Italian consumers. The online store is still in a developing phase, and don’t carry all the concession brands yet. They should join soon, contributing to reach Rinascente’s five-year goal of EUR 100 million in sales.

In 2020, Rinascente saw its net sales decreasing 35%. The business is expected to return to pre-Covid figures in 2022. In 2019, the company generated net sales of EUR 800 million.

Rinascente Piazza Fiume Store in Rome to Be Fully Renovated by 2023 

What: HBC follows the steps of Macy’s and Kith and is the first retailer in Canada to back an inclusivity-oriented non-profit organisation

Why it is important:  Declarations are not enough anymore for retailers and brands to display their beliefs and values. Nowadays, commitments are needed to appeal to their communities of shoppers and this goes through adhering to locally relevant organisations. It might differ from a country to another, given local social and cultural context, however this is clearly becoming a norm.

The Canadian department store chain Hudson’s Bay announced it has joined the non profit organisation The 15 Percent Pledge. By doing so, the company (which operates 88 locations in North America) commits into displaying a minimum of 15% of black or indigenous people-owned brands in its assortment.

The 15 Percent Pledge, based on the fact that Black people represent 15% of the total US population, was launched in 2020 during civil unrest following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Runt the Runway, Sephora, Vogue, Macy’s or Kith are among the 22 companies backing this non-profit organisation.

Hudson’s Bay has become the first Canadian department store

What:  Japan reported a +5.2% growth in retail sales during the month of March

Why it is important: All department stores were forced to close on April 25 and are expected to remain shuttered until the end of May. It shows both the constant appetite from customers to get back to ‘normal retail’ and the fragility of economical situations all across the world.

Retail sales grew +5.2% in March due to the fact that customers were in high demand after shutdown and disruptions related to Covid-19 crisis. This allowed department stores to post an even higher demand, of +19.3%, in the beginning of the Spring season. However it is expected that this trend will not live long, given the fact that the Japanese government is reported to be currently examining maintaining the lockdown measures until the end of the month, in order to make the situation clear and safe for the Tokyo Olympics which will occur during the coming month of July.

Japanese retail sales rise

What: The department store says it’s seeing a “rebound” in business, which is expressed to stakeholders in a confidential report with preliminary fiscal third-quarter results.

Why is it important: The report details a Q3 rebound in sales that challenges speculation on the state of its business since emerging from bankruptcy last September.

The report provides guidance on comparable fiscal third-quarter sales, indicating a 43 to 44% gain in the third quarter compared to the 2020 period, and a 6 to 7% decline from the third quarter of 2019. The report also indicates that Neiman’s USD 900 million asset-backed loan, led by Bank of America and a consortium of commercial banks, is fully undrawn.

In the recent months, the company has been dogged by speculation of declining support by certain vendors curbing wholesale distribution, switching to concession business models, and being outperformed by competitors, putting Neiman’s under steady scrutiny. The third-quarter report challenges some of the months of speculation on the state of the business.

Citing some trends, the report said see now, buy now and newness are selling, and that the company is working with brands to support that with more frequent merchandise drops. While women’s is generally still soft, the department store have seen a shift in women’s contemporary, bridal and swim indicating signs of a recovery More shorts were sold in February this year than in June last year. The uptick in women’s contemporary reflects women starting to get out and socialize. Men’s sneakers and the designer business are strong, and much of the men’s business is coming from younger customers.

NMG’s CEO sees “a real desire for luxury and we are capturing more share of that demand.…We finished Q2 and entered Q3 with much less inventory than prior years. Full-price selling is significantly up. We moved markdowns later, by four to six weeks. Historically we would have May markdowns. We moved them to June and July. We are promoting full price and it is working.” On the downside, tourism continues to be really nonexistent.

Though Neiman’s is presenting a brighter picture, it must significantly sustain revenue gains to manage its remaining debt and maintain solid relationships with vendors. NMG’s total revenues for its last fiscal year were USD 3.65 billion, compared to USD 4.66 billion the year before.

Neiman Marcus Group Cites Sales Rebound 

What: Dillard’s reported first quarter 2021 sales of USD 1,328.5 million, an increase of 73% over the previous year.

Why is it important: The strong sales and earnings performance indicates that customers returned to shop following the pandemic.

Last year due to Covid-19, customers were forced to stay at home. However, as the warmer weather arrives, vaccinations increases, and stimulus money releases, Dillard’s sales increased over 2019 levels.

In addition, Dillard’s limited-edition capsule collection which was developed by Kimberly Whitman for Antonio Melani will make shopping even more interesting as it features feminine prints, strong colors, and dresses for entertaining.

Dillard’s is expected to have strong selling and earning results in the second quarter as customers are attentively returning for their social occasion needs.

Dillard’s Beats Expectations And There’s More Good News To Come

What: Senior officials told shareholders the company continued to innovate through the pandemic and is more agile.

Why is it important: At the start of 2020, digital accounted for 30% of sales, but the pandemic pushed digital to 54% by the fourth quarter last year.

Nordstrom strengthened its financial situation through “aggressive” expense savings and reduced base salaries of the executive team, said CEO Erik Nordstrom. The Seattle-based retailer ended its fourth quarter with USD 1.5 billion in liquidity, and fully paid back on its USD 800 million credit facility.

Through 2020, a big part of the program involved implementing integrations between the Nordstrom department stores, Rack off-price stores and Nordstrom Local doors, and offering more selection (from 300,000 items to potentially 1.5 million over the next three to five years), faster delivery and access to services.

Nordstrom has forecast annual revenue to reach USD 17 billion in the next three to five years, which compares to USD 10.38 billion in sales last year, and USD 15.13 billion in 2019.

Despite the Ordeal of the Pandemic, Nordstrom Cites Progress 

What: Luxury demand soars, allowing the retailer to reduce net losses

Why is it important: Operating income for the January-March period rose 18.5% on-year to KRW 61.8 billion.

The operator reported net losses for the quarter ending in March that narrowed to KRW 40.6 billion (USD 36.5 million) from KRW 43.3 billion during the same period in 2020.

Lotte attributed this improved performance to demand for luxury goods in its department stores. The group’s discount and supermarket chains, however, are seeing less of a rebound. The company’s sales fell 4.8% to KRW 3.9 trillion (USD 3.5 billion) from last year’s KRW 4.1 trillion (USD 3.7 billion).

Lotte Shopping’s Losses Narrow as Luxury Demand Soars 

What: Its second beauty outlet opened at Centre:mk shopping centre in Milton Keynes, north-west London, after a first opening in Lakeside, Essex, last September.

Why is it important: Through its new concept, Harrods aims to develop locally and will take into account the specificities of the local communities.

The new store, of nearly 2,700 square meters, offers a wide selection of high-end and luxury brands. According to the British brand, the rollout of this new concept aims to "bring Harrods' expertise in beauty, selection and luxury shopping experience to new consumers across the

UK. Each store is developed taking into account the local "beauty" community, to offer the latest products and experiences, often for the first time."

The "Playtable" space provides access to professional hairdressers, make-up demonstrations and product tests, while the "Skincare Station" area offers tailor-made consultations and treatments, not to mention the "Click and Collect" shop, available from 6 May.

From May 17, when restaurants will be able to reopen their interior spaces, H Beauty will also inaugurate the Champagne Bar, a 44-seat space with a "regressive menu of pastries and cocktails".

Harrods développe son enseigne H Beauty en Angleterre

What: Fashion is picking up again in the US following the combined action of stores reopening, stimulus checks and vaccination process

Why it is important:  Low key fashion remains the norm: customers tend to favour “hybrid” products, mixing comfort with practicality. Formal fashion is not yet back on track.

American customers prepare to return to the office and have started to visit stores in that perspective, taking advantage of the safer situation, a need for change, and stimulus checks. This translates into close to pre pandemic footfall in stores (-3.5% during the April 5 week, compared with 2019) and increases in fashion items purchases.

However, this is not the return to high-ticket formal items: customers kept from the lockdown periods a taste for comfort, and want to keep on enjoy it. For instance, Randa Apparel & Accessories discovered that customers tended to stay in sweatpants and carry only a few credit cards when moving within a radius of less than 2 miles. If they travel farther than 2 miles, they put on pants and grab a wallet. This translates into new ‘hot’ items:

• Slippers with leather soles
• Cargo pants and wide-leg Levi’s jeans
• Waist cropped tops
• Sport sandals

These buying patterns have been observed across the board, including at Sak’s, Levi’s, Revolve.

Cargo Pants and Outdoor Slippers Are Hot, as Americans Return to Stores

What: A pop up dedicated to teen customers

Why it is important:  The concept seems pretty simple (pink & flashy décor, a stage for social events). If this is what it takes to lure in 11 – 15 years old, department stores should watch carefully how this popup fares.

Mango launches in early May a new test store on Las Ramblas, downtown Barcelona, aiming directly at 11 – 15 years old.

The brand displays on 200 sqm its teen range, launched six months ago, and features a stage to allow teens to record videos for Tik Tok and other social media.

The duration of this pop-up is not precised and the brand has not made any official communication on this topic.

Mango Opens Dedicated Teen Pop-Up Store 

What: Standard & Poors Global Ratings raised its outlook for Macy's from negative to positive, signalling that the retailer could get an upgrade from its current B+ credit rating in the coming months.

Why is it important: Encouraging signs of an accelerating economic recovery are emerging, and operating conditions for apparel retailers are fast improving.

Over the course of 2020, Macy's was downgraded by S&P multiple times. About a year ago, when S&P lowered Macy's rating to B+, analysts with the agency said that more downgrades could come if sales and profits remain depressed from a prolonged pandemic or macroeconomic slump.

In 2021, along with vaccines, multiple rounds of federal stimulus have lifted consumer spending. S&P's noted that Macy's, as digital sales expanded, boosted its omnichannel capabilities during the year. The analysts also noted that Macy's picked up new customers as competitors J.C. Penney and Belk filed for bankruptcy, giving the retailer an opportunity to expand its market share, especially in digital shopping.

S&P turns positive on Macy's as apparel, economy gain steam 

What: IT splits its business in two and focuses on the retail operations

Why it is important:  A long-term partner of international retailers (Galeries Lafayette, Dover Street Market), I.T.  missed the digital turnaround a decade ago and has suffered from the recent situation in Hong Kong, now forcing it to focus on the retail business in priority.

Famous HK-based I.T. multibrand business is delisting from the HK stock exchange, and splitting into 2 entities: the A Bathing Ape streetwear brand (acquired a decade ago) and the store operations, including partnerships with Galeries Lafayette and Dover Street Market.

I.T. has notoriously lagged behind in terms of e-commerce penetration (like many other HK-based retailers such as Lane Crawford and Joyce) and suffered during the 2019 protests. It is estimated that they lost 32% of turnover in the first half of 2020.

I.T. Delists From Hong Kong Stock Exchange

What: Despite being the most digitally savvy generation, Gen Z loves to shop in physical stores, but differently from older consumers.

Why is it important: 81% of Gen Z prefers to shop in stores and more than half do so because it allows them to disconnect from social media, a Kearney survey found. That desire means retailers are going to have to focus on creating the feeling of community while offering a selection of products that appeal to Gen Z tastes.

In fact, 98% of Gen Z shoppers globally said they typically make purchases in a store some or most of the time, according to a survey by IBM. Three times as many Gen Zs said they shop most of the time in a store compared to the number who said they shop most of the time online. That may be because, Gen Z is one of the loneliest and most isolated of all generations.

Brands need to start dedicating space for these kinds of decompression zones if they want to attract the Gen Z shopper. A good Gen Z store should also be hyper-focused. When asked what they are looking for once they arrive in-store, three out of four Gen Z shoppers told Kearney a “well-curated store experience focused on a limited number of products” was extremely or moderately important to them.

For Gen Z shoppers, physical retail spaces are all about escaping the algorithm, to see things outside your filter bubble. In that sense, brands are starting to move away from rollout strategies and designing each of their stores with more modular, flexible concepts. This is key given a poor in-store experience has led one-quarter of Gen Z shoppers to skip making a purchase.

Stores of tomorrow need to trigger memories that are beyond the transactional approach. Given the luxury industry is predominantly about recruiting first-time shoppers, not repeat purchases, the role of stores continues to be very important.

![Gen Z 

What Gen Z want from physical retail 

What: Retailers and brands are investing in store fulfilment and smaller and more nimble warehouses near shoppers to meet customer demand more sustainably and efficiently.

Why is it important: Micro-fulfilment strategies mean retailers can ship and deliver goods faster, but overhauling a distribution network is a daunting and expensive task for retailers.

To facilitate this transition, a number of tech companies are helping brands get up to speed.

PredictSpring has built a mobile point-of-sale interface for store associates to prepare a package for click-and-collect or e-commerce shipment. These types of tools will soon become as ubiquitous and necessary as payment systems and e-commerce platform.

A key component of micro-fulfilment is rethinking the role of the retail store, which now needs to function like a warehouse and bricks-and-mortar shop. Large beauty and fashion brands have a prolific real estate footprint, so they want to leverage that says Maggie Barnett, COO of ShipHero.

PredictSpring predicts that soon, any metro area with more than one million people will see that the majority of orders are fulfilled from stores, rather than warehouses. Flexibility at checkout in how customers can receive their orders, including buy online, pickup in store or ship from store, is increasingly important.

This puts a further burden on retail associates, who are already expanding expertise to include video shopping consultations, personal styling and online customer service inquiries. A key concern among ShipHero’s customers, is the ability to train associates to scale these services, including packing and shipping e-commerce orders.

Relying on stores more to fulfil online orders also changes the role of the warehouse. Flexe connects brands with a network of more than 1 500 warehouse locations in North America who have free space. Brands can be set up within three weeks, don’t have long-term commitments and can specify packaging. For example, if a brand like Nike wanted to do a drop with two-day or same-day delivery, it could set up temporary fulfilment locations outside of key cities.

Storing products closer to the customer is more important than ever, but allocating inventory can become a “bottleneck”, says Ben Eachus, co-founder and CEO of Flowspace, a logistics platform. Something that can help is inventory visibility, where individual products are tagged to show exactly where they are at any given time.

Forget mega warehouses

The department store will open ‘VR Pangyo Land’ in its Pangyo branch wher customers can experience a 360-degree virtual reality department store. At the VR department store, customers can virtually visit around 50 locations throughout Hyundai Department Store Pangyo’s 11 floors.

Among them, customers can visit 14 virtual stores, where they can access a ‘VR Showroom’ to peruse available items and purchase them at Hyundai Department Store’s online shopping mall.

Hyundai Department Store Pangyo to Offer VR Shopping 

What: Three charts to illustrate US uneven and unequal progress with shoppers returning to stores.

Why it is important: Despite remaining uncertainties, Moody’s is optimistic. In early May, the credit rating service revised its outlook for the US apparel and retail sector to positive versus stable.

The recovery this spring has been uneven, with spending surging after the US government sent stimulus checks to many Americans. But foot traffic remains significantly below levels seen in the same period in 2019.

![Retail’s uneven recovery 1

But the recovery will not be evenly felt across the industry. Retailers that performed well during the pandemic, like Ulta Beauty, are seeing better traffic than in 2019. And value-driven retailers like T.J. Maxx, which still offer shoppers a bargain experience that is not yet easily replicated online, are also seeing traffic surges after a year of store closures.

![Retail’s uneven recovery 2

Department stores are struggling, with Nordstrom, Macy’s and Bloomingdales among the retailers still down from pre-pandemic traffic levels, though improved from February.

Mall stalemates L Brands, Macy’s and Gap are seeing their stock prices recover after sharp declines in the early months of 2020 — a sign investors are optimistic about the future of the category.

![Retail’s uneven recovery 3

Retail’s Uneven Recovery in Three Charts 

What:  All major department stores are entering into the food & beverage preparation and delivery market

Why it is important:  Rather than teaming up with specialized players, they build their solutions on their own, in order to create new streams of revenue.

Korean department stores are launching new activities and services to adapt to evolving customers’ demands and create new streams of revenue:

• Shinsegae sets up parking zones dedicated to pickup for delivery motorcycles, and offers food & beverage delivery,
• Lotte teams up with a logistical company to deliver purchases in neighbouring residential areas,
• Hyundai delivers prepared meals within 6 km.

With such initiatives, they also compete with food delivery platforms.

Department Stores in Korea Diversify 

What:  In spite of a record fine, Alibaba claims its fundamentals are still valid and efficient.

Why it is important:  Within all dangers that Alibaba might have to face, a state clampdown on data management would be a blow for the group which based its business model on a very efficient data management process.

Alibaba has announced a record loss of EUR 975 million for Q1 2021, due to a fine of EUR 2.3 billion (4% of its total turnover) for anti-commercial practices. Without this fine, Alibaba claims it would have posted a profit of EUR 3.3 billion, and aims at convincing markets that the worst is now over.

There are however some issues that will need a further resolution:

• The group’s financial arm, Ant, is still struggling with regulators,
• Beijing’s approach to data, and potentially constraining regulation,
• The future of the group’s media empire.

Alibaba aims at achieving a turnover of EUR 119.2 billion in 2021, +32% vs. 2020 and the double of 2019.

After $260 Billion Slide, Alibaba Aims to Show the Worst Is Over

This marks the company’s second straight year of losses, following a loss of JPY 11.19 billion (USD 102.4 million) the previous year. Meanwhile, net sales were down 27.1% and operating loss hit JPY 20.98 billion (USD 191.9 million).

The group expects that while net sales will drop a further 45.2% during the current financial year, it will generate a profit of JPY 1 billion (USD 9.1 million).

Sales of value-added, big-ticket items such as luxury brand goods, watches and jewelry have been favourable, particularly at its Isetan Shinjuku and Nihonbashi Mitsukoshi flagship stores in Tokyo. Thanks to both revamped e-commerce site and new shopping app, Isetan Mitsukoshi said it achieved a yearly online sales total of more than JPY 30 billion (USD 275 million).

Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings’ Annual Loss Totals $382 Million 

Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Records FY Net Loss of Over 40 Billion Yen