Homewares in Japan

PROSPECTS

Time-saving and health are the top trends for kitchen products

Busy modern lifestyles and rising health-awareness are combining to drive up demand for products that enable consumers to prepare healthy food quickly and conveniently. The demand for convenience is being bolstered by an increase in single-person households and families in which both parents are working.

Dinnerware under polarisation

Dinnerware is undergoing a process of polarisation. Brands that are perceived to offer reasonable quality at an affordable price, such as Nitori, Seria, a 100 yen shop, and IKEA, are popular in categories such as dinnerware.

Dual usage products

Homewares is seeing a minor trend towards ovenware that can also be used as dinnerware from brands such as MUJI. Such products appeal to the growing consumer demand for convenience by removing the need to transfer food to dishes once cooked and also cutting down on the amount of washing-up required after a meal.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Kai Corp maintains presence in kitchen utensils

Kai Corp maintains a strong presence in kitchen knives, with its Seki Magoroku brand selling particularly well. As well as generating considerable domestic demand, Japanese branded kitchen utensils appeal strongly to inbound tourists who buy them to take home.

Nitori placing growing emphasis on homewares

Nitori is expanding its store network in cities through the opening of smaller outlets tailored to evolving shopping habits amongst urban consumers. This is leading the company to place an increasing emphasis on homewares, as its new urban stores are not large enough to show much furniture and homewares generates a higher frequency of sales.

MUJI expanding

MUJI is building a presence in homewares through the consistent expansion of its store network and maintaining the quality of its product offer. The brand’s positioning is less strongly founded on pricing than previously thanks to the emergence of players such as Nitori and 100 yen shops.

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