Marketing Overview
During the current consolidated fiscal year, as employment and personal income remained at low levels, the Japanese economy continued to face difficulties although it began to show signs of gradual recovery due to an increase in exports and the effects of economic stimulus measures enforced by the government.
In the apparel industry, with consumer confidence remaining subdued, manufacturers were urged to respond quickly to the changing lifestyles of consumers and the diversification of purchasing behavior.
Under these circumstances, the Tokyo Style Group made all-out efforts to live up to the “Product Focus” principle, its unchangeable, top-priority management policy, and put forth all its resources to develop truly valuable products that would satisfy customers.
Specifically, the Group provided high-quality, high-value-added products at reasonable prices by developing its own inter-brand strategic materials and functional materials and producing them in a systematic way at directly managed factories in Japan and abroad, which boast of high technological capabilities.
On the marketing front, in addition to establishing closer cooperation between sales and planning divisions, the Tokyo Style Group took new measures to expand its business, such as hiring capable personnel from outside to develop new sales channels and new brands and pursuing new applications of its store information system.
In terms of corporate management, under the new executive organization formed immediately after the sudden passing of the former President Mr. Takano, our company newly set up a “Directors and Corporate Officers Meeting” to make precise managerial decisions and ensure dynamic execution of business by promoting closer communication and deeper mutual understanding among heads of divisions.
As regards group operation, our company has expanded its business domain as the business performance of its group companies with marked individuality, such as Nano Universe Co., Ltd.,
Jack Corporation, and SPIC INTERNATIONAL Co., Ltd., has continued to be strong.
Furthermore, in June 2009, our company made Ijiit Inc., operated by designer Keiji Itakura, its subsidiary and actively opened select shop type original brand editing store called Diary.
Although our company took the corporate management measures described above, it could not prevent the stagnation of the overall market from affecting its financial outcome and had unsatisfactory results. For the current consolidated fiscal year, sales revenue was 52.196 million yen (down 16.7% from a year earlier) and operating profits were 422 million yen (down 84.1%). However, due to gains from the revaluation of securities brought by the recovery of the stock market and other factors, ordinary profits were 4.281 million yen (up 589.3%) and net profit for the current term was 740 million yen (net loss of 9.391 million yen for the previous year).
Outlook for the Future
Although there are bright signs in some industrial sectors, employment and consumer spending have not reached the point of recovery, and the economic situation is expected to continue to be unpredictable to businesses.
In March 2010, the Tokyo Style Group carried out major organizational reforms and personnel reshuffle to radically uplift the morale of its personnel and put in place systems that enabled it to respond precisely to the changes of the times. With these, our company will work to increase sales and recover its profitable structure.
In terms of product strategy, we will review our brand portfolio in order to meet consumer needs and market changes. We will also adjust the positioning of and reorganize existing brands while introducing new ones.
Our company will also designate “22 OCTOBRE,” “Style com,” “nanette lepore,” “SCENE DEUX,” and “STYLE ME” as five brands to be enhanced. While stepping up merchandise planning for these brands, we will raise their market penetration and recognition levels by advertising them in magazines and other media. Through such moves, we will expand the scale of our branding.
Moreover, we will promote a new “value emphasis” policy called “super value merchandising
(S･V･M)” and strive to develop appealing products that will garner support from, and obtain a favorable response from customers.
In terms of sales strategy, plans call for the introduction of new contemporary casual brands “Haute Hippie” developed by New York’s up-and-coming designers starting from this year’s fall/winter line in order to increase sales at department stores.
Meanwhile, to open up new sales channels, our company began advertisements of its new brand “Partenaire” via teleshopping in April 2010. Starting this year, we will also offer a fall/winter line under the new brand Lovederose, developed for urban fashion buildings and semi-urban commercial facilities, simultaneously in Japan and China.
As regards our overseas strategy, we will consider the Chinese market to be as important as the Japanese one in terms of sales operations and focus on it even more energetically than before.
At the same time, we will expand operations to reach the Southeast Asian market as well as the Indian and Russian markets and strengthen our position in those markets in the years to come.
On the production front, as part of its “China Plus One” strategy, our company will begin production in Vietnam starting from this year’s fall/winter line.
In order to advance these business strategies, the Tokyo Style Group will strive to actively unearth and train capable personnel inside and outside the organization and review its personnel system and pay structure. It will also establish a stronger and more efficient management foundation by reforming its logistics, revamping its computer systems, and taking other necessary measures.
Your continued support and patronage would be very much appreciated.
