Japan

In 2023, both retail and away-from-home tissue and hygiene in Japan maintained growth in current value terms. Demographics, the fading away of COVID-19, and inflation were key factors affecting the industry in 2023. Baby-related products such as…

Retail tissue turned to decline in Japan in volume terms in 2023, although current value growth continued. 2022 and 2023 were years of price increases for the category. For instance, Daio Paper increased the B2C product shipment price by 15% or more…

Looking at the performance of retail adult incontinence in Japan in 2023, current value growth was underpinned by price increases. The overall category saw a double-digit increase in the average unit price in current terms, which turned the low…

In 2023, nappies/diapers pants witnessed another year of significant retail volume decline in Japan, despite seeing growth in current value terms. There is no sign of a weakening of the decrease in the number of births in Japan. According to…

Volume sales of menstrual care products fell faster than the decline in the female population aged 12-54 in Japan in 2023, according to Euromonitor’s Consumers data. One reason was price increases. Inflation was seen globally after the pandemic,…

Away-from-home (AFH) tissue and hygiene maintained dynamic current value growth in Japan in 2023. Inbound tourism was one of the major economic boosters in Japan until COVID-19 hit the country from early 2020. It was a disaster for most industries…

A typical performance amongst home care categories in Japan in 2023 was that volume sales fell, whilst average unit prices increased, driving up value sales as a result. However, toilet care was a little different. The category saw significant…

Most categories within surface care saw declines in both retail volume and current value terms in 2023. The explanation for the drop in volume terms is simple – people began to spend more time outside the home. In May 2023, the Japanese government…

Floor polish is not a standard product for many younger households. It may have been used by older generations, but the custom of polishing the floor with wax products has not been passed down to the younger generations. First, it is very…

Laundry care saw growth in retail current value terms in 2023. However, retail volume sales fell by an even larger amount than the drop seen in 2022. What pushed up value sales was price increases. Japan saw three decades with little growth in the…

In 2023, current value sales of home insecticides in Japan registered positive growth from the previous year; however, volume sales declined. The decline in volume sales can be attributed to the fading of COVID-19. The pandemic had much less of an…

2020 and 2021 were closed years for Japan, with home seclusion as the basis of everyday life due to the COVID-19 pandemic. From 2022 the situation began to change, as the level of risk reduced, and people went out to socialise more, workers went back…

Dishwashing saw strong growth in current value terms in 2023. However, in volume terms sales were almost flat between 2022 and 2023. What pushed up value sales was increases in unit prices. Japan had seen nearly three decades of virtual economic…

In 2020 bleach saw an unexpected increase in both volume and current value sales, as COVID-19 hit the country. Some consumers were very concerned about the pandemic, and became especially hygiene-conscious, therefore using bleach to clean their…

Air care had been seeing steady growth in value sales in the pre-pandemic years, and in 2020, when the pandemic hit Japan, there was further significant growth. As interest in indoor air quality improved along with much more time spent at home and…

Vending machines have a significant presence in Japan, and have been part of the local culture for decades. Vending is a contactless, unmanned, compact, and convenient way of shopping. Although sales declined during the pandemic, a rebound was seen…

In 2023, price rises were seen across various industries in Japan, impacting the cost of living. During COVID-19, consumers’ eating habits shifted more towards cooking and eating at home. Despite the country gradually returning to the pre-COVID-19…

Traditionally, Japanese consumers have enjoyed shopping in areas called Shotengai, where many small shops, including small local grocers, are lined up along the streets. Customers visit different specialist shops to buy their vegetables, fish, and…

Retail maintained solid current value growth in Japan in 2023, with increases across both offline and e-commerce. In 2023, offline retail regained stronger momentum due to the return of mobility post-COVID-19. On 8 May 2023, the Japanese government…

After e-commerce showed double-digit current value growth during COVID-19 in 2020, growth slowed significantly in 2021, and remained at this lower level in 2022 and 2023, as with the reopening of physical stores post-pandemic, fewer people made the…