Influx of Japanese retail and F&B businesses to Singapore

SINGAPORE: Japanese brands and companies have been expanding and growing in Singapore in recent months, despite the global economic slowdown.

These include clothing giant Uniqlo and food and beverage (F&B) brands such as Ippudo, Aoba and Toku Toku.

They are attracted by the strong consumer spending power, governance and favourable tax rates. This is despite the high capital costs that are similar to those in Japan.

F&B giant Japan Foods recently introduced a Japanese food hall, housing multiple brand names, and investing about S$4 million in a newly-opened shopping mall, Tampines 1.

Japan Foods plans to eventually expand some of those brands as standalone outlets in other shopping centres, such as ION Orchard and Orchard Central, along the country's main shopping belt.

Despite the relatively higher capital and labour costs, many Japanese firms still find Singapore an attractive place to operate in compared to other locations in the region.

CEO of Japan Foods, Takahashi Kenichi, said: "Because tax is cheaper (in Singapore) than Japan, so companies find it easier to open a shop in Singapore. I think Singapores economy is almost the same as Japans."

For brands that are not as well-known in Singapore, the right location becomes even more critical if they want to grow here, according to the executive director of the Singapore Retailers Association, Lau Chuen Wei.

Some have been able to overcome this by setting up in places with healthy traffic flow such as Liang Court, which is popular among the Japanese community.

Setting up a shop there has helped improve sales for Greenberry Loft, a Japanese label for children's clothing. It says sales have gone up by about 40 per cent since it moved in last year from Raffles Place.

Many of the new Japanese businesses entering the Singapore market belong to the F&B sector. Analysts say this sector is among those which are more resilient during a downturn.

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News & Politics

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• Japan
• Singapore
• Manpuku