According to the Japan Chain Stores Association (58 firms, 10,447 stores), same-store sales of apparel in 2018 decreased by 5.3 per cent compared to the previous year to 1,009,400 mn yen, thus decreasing for 27 consecutive years.
Total sales decreased by 0.2 per cent to 12,988,305 mn yen, and decreased for the third straight year. Unfavourable weather had a greater effect on apparel sales than in 2017. The decrease was greater than the 2.3 per cent decline in 2017, and even in every quarter of the year, sales decreased for all apparel items with the exception of the 0.4 per cent increase for other garments during January-March 2018.
Sales of household items also decreased due to unfavourable weather, but sales of furniture and interior goods including bedding, rugs and carpets as well as curtains increased by 1.7 per cent. Apparel sales in December 2018 decreased by 4.7 per cent compared to the same month of the previous year to 96,933 mn yen, as the temperature was higher during the first half of the month. Sales of household goods increased by 1.0 per cent to 261,958 mn yen, of which furniture and interior goods were up 3.8 per cent. Total sales decreased by 0.7 per cent to 1,294,133 mn yen.
