Economy

Japan Convenience Stores Post Record Sales in 2023

Reuters file photo/Toru Hanai
An employee walks at a 7-Eleven convenience store in Tokyo, December 6, 2017.

Jiji Press

17:10 JST, January 23, 2024

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — Convenience store sales in Japan rose 4.3% in 2023 from the previous year to a record high of ¥11,659.3 billion, marking the third consecutive year of growth, the Japan Franchise Association said Monday.

Per-store sales climbed as more people went out and demand from foreign visitors grew after the removal of COVID-19 restrictions. Ice cream and beverages sold well amid a scorching summer heat wave.

The number of stores fell by 125 to 55,713.

On a same-store basis, sales gained 4.1% to ¥11,186.4 billion. The number of shoppers rose 2.9%, while the average value of purchases per customer climbed 1.1% to ¥723.5.

In December alone, same-store sales expanded 4.2% from a year before to ¥1,012 billion, thanks to growing customer traffic due to visits to families and year-end events.