Aeon owns highest capital among Japanese retailers

Earlier this year, Nikkei.com published a list of Japan’s leading retailing companies, based on their total assets. Aeon, Asia’s largest retail group, proved with a capital of approximately 8.75 trillion Japanese yen its dominating position within the Japanese retail market. With total assets more than three trillion yen behind the leading spot, the retail group Seven & I Holdings secured the second rank.

Japanese retailers face a variety of challenges in their home market: dwindling population numbers, dropping household expenditure and a negative trend in offline shopping behavior are contributing factors to a more competitive market environment. However, maintaining a steady performance in Japan is vital, as domestic sales account for a significant proportion of the companies’ global success.

One of the main reasons why the Aeon Group retained its leading position might be found in its strong presence across various retail channels throughout the country, such as general merchandise stores, supermarkets, discounters, and convenience stores. Through its subsidiaries, the company also engages in financial services, drugstore and pharmacy businesses, as well as shopping mall development businesses. According to Reuters, Aeon further plans to dip into online retail, following the example of Amazon’s widely successful “marketplace”.