Taking the World by Storm
In June this year, Daiso Industries Company Limited’s continued commitment to innovation, customer value and international growth was recognised at the Global RLI Awards, where the company was named ‘International Retailer of the Year’. The judging panel praised the brand for its exceptional pace of store expansion, adaptability to diverse markets and ability to deliver a consistently high-quality experience worldwide. This recognition comes as they embark on their next strategic chapter – expanding its footprint across Europe, with planned entries into key markets – further reinforcing its vision of becoming a trusted household name in every corner of the globe.
Over the past year, Daiso Industries Company Limited (which operates the brands DAISO, Standard Products and THREEPPY) has focused on how to increase profitability and customer satisfaction per store, rather than simply increasing the number of stores in its portfolio. They have been more rigorous in their location selection and fine-tuned their product mix and display methods to ensure that each store has the best appeal in its area.
Their priorities for the next 12 – 18 months will be to expand their presence in the US and into new markets in Europe, an important test of their business model in unfamiliar markets. In existing markets, they will further improve their store layouts and distribution networks to offer more products efficiently.
In the US market, they are accelerating their efforts to open stores by leveraging the store management know-how thy have acquired on the West Coast. Opening stores in new states provides them with the opportunities to meet local customers and create contact points with more people.
“Our next step is not only to increase the number of stores, but to further enhance the experience value per store,” highlights Seiji Yano, President and Representative Director of Daiso Industries Company Limited. “We want customers to feel the appeal of DAISO by displaying more of the same products as our Japanese stores, while creating a comfortable space where they can stay for a long time and enjoy new discoveries. The customer experience is a unique strength of our physical stores.”
Outside the US, they see great potential in the EU, in regions where not many retailers have entered yet and where there is a strong need for quality products at affordable prices. They believe their one-price model will be highly competitive in these markets.
The company strikes a balance between rapid international growth and maintaining consistent brand standards by not changing the core of DAISO, but tailoring the presentation to each market. They maintain the brand’s core concepts of “quality over price, “surprises and discoveries” and “variety of products” in all stores around the world.
“The most important factor in deciding where to expand into is the raison d’être of our stores. Why do people want to come to our stores? This is always at the forefront of our thinking. Economic growth and demographics are of course important, but beyond that, we focus on how well our products integrate into the culture and lives of the people in the country and whether we can offer new value,” comments Yano.
When entering a new market, they first introduce ‘DAISO’ and deliver their value to a wide range of customers. After that, they analyse consumer purchasing data and introduce their other formats ‘Standard Products’ and ‘THREEPPY’ when there is a growing demand for products a little more expensive.
Yano explains to us that one of the things that resonate with people around the world is high-quality products at one price. He says that DAISO aim to be a lifestyle infrastructure business, so they want to continue to provide products that improve the quality of their customers’ lives all over the globe.
In our previous conversations with Yano, supply chain stability was a focus, as it is essential to maintaining the reliability of stores. A key priority for the company is to never stop the flow of products from production to stores. “For this reason, we are expanding our procurement network around the world without relying on specific production bases. We also work closely with logistics bases around the world and conduct appropriate inventory management based on demand forecasts, thereby creating a system where customers can get the products they want at any time.”
Sustainability also remains a key aspect of operations and they are gradually switching to packaging that reduces the amount of plastic used while maintaining quality. At their stores, they have introduced LED lighting that reduces power consumption and are thoroughly sorting and reducing waste. Through these and other efforts, they are striving to fulfil their social responsibilities as a company and ensure their customers choose them as a reliable brand.
This year, the business was the recipient of the ‘International Retailer of the Year’ award at the milestone 20th Anniversary Global RLI Awards event, with Yano feeling this is a testament to the recognition of their vision of enriching lives around the world.
“This award reaffirms the direction we want to take. In the future, we would like to use this award as an opportunity to participate in more international retail events to directly communicate our company’s management philosophy and the appeal of our products. This is an important step in gaining new business opportunities and further expanding our store network.”
Over the coming years, their biggest challenge is to constantly evolve the attractiveness of their products and stores. Customers are always looking for new things and to meet their expectations, DAISO need to further accelerate product development and continue to offer new experiences at their stores.
“To address this challenge, we will strengthen our system, listen to what people on the ground say and constantly identify market trends so we may quickly reflect this in our products as we continue to build,” Yano concludes.
www.daiso-sangyo.co.jp/en/
