World announced its consolidated financial results for the fiscal year ending March 2013. The group's consolidated sales increased 2.0% year-on-year to 336,480 million yen, operating profit decreased 39.0% to 7,172 million yen, ordinary profit decreased 55.9% to 4,094 million yen, and net loss for the period was 736 million yen. This marks the first time in 18 years since the fiscal year ending March 1995 that the company has posted a final deficit.
In the first half of the year, sales increased thanks to measures focused on growth, but poor weather, staggered sales periods, and increased in-store promotional expenses resulted in an operating loss. In the second half, profitability improved thanks to the economic recovery.
Sales by item were as follows: women's clothing increased 2.6% year-on-year to 207.16 billion yen, men's clothing increased 3.7% to 36.125 billion yen, children's clothing decreased 3.7% to 14.05 billion yen, and clothing accessories increased 4.3% to 73.318 billion yen.
Looking at the breakdown by business format, in the department store SPA format, "UNTITLED" performed steadily, but other career brands struggled due to weather factors and a lack of trends. For the new Mrs. demographic, "REFLECT," "SYNCHROCROSSINGS," and "PHILODICETA" performed generally well.
In the buying SPA format centered on select shops, "Aquagirl" performed somewhat sluggishly, while "Anatelier" performed well and grew to become the number one brand, and "Dressteria" also expanded its fan base. Among the buying commodity stores primarily found in shopping centers and train stations, Globe, known for its value for money, continued to perform well. Index and Ozoc also began to recover. Among the fashion commodity stores primarily found in shopping centers, brands like Hash Hash and Sankansion struggled due to intensifying competition. In the men's category, Takeo Kikuchi, a core brand with Takeo Kikuchi returning as creative director, successfully expanded its customer base. Also performing well were select store brands like Shoe LaLou, Opaque.Clip, and Flaxus, which have built platforms optimized for individual exhibitions according to channel. Shoe LaLou, which is promoting franchise expansion, opened 12 stores in major regional supermarkets within one year of launch. Furthermore, its own e-commerce site, World Online Store, continued to grow strongly, increasing 34.7% year-on-year.
Next fiscal year, we will continue to focus on retail-style SPA, with stores as the starting point. We will clarify our brand identity and strive to provide attractive value in preparation for the development and renewal of commercial facilities. We also plan to expand our production locations beyond China to address the risks of currency fluctuations and rising costs.
In the first half of the year, sales increased thanks to measures focused on growth, but poor weather, staggered sales periods, and increased in-store promotional expenses resulted in an operating loss. In the second half, profitability improved thanks to the economic recovery.
Sales by item were as follows: women's clothing increased 2.6% year-on-year to 207.16 billion yen, men's clothing increased 3.7% to 36.125 billion yen, children's clothing decreased 3.7% to 14.05 billion yen, and clothing accessories increased 4.3% to 73.318 billion yen.
Looking at the breakdown by business format, in the department store SPA format, "UNTITLED" performed steadily, but other career brands struggled due to weather factors and a lack of trends. For the new Mrs. demographic, "REFLECT," "SYNCHROCROSSINGS," and "PHILODICETA" performed generally well.
In the buying SPA format centered on select shops, "Aquagirl" performed somewhat sluggishly, while "Anatelier" performed well and grew to become the number one brand, and "Dressteria" also expanded its fan base. Among the buying commodity stores primarily found in shopping centers and train stations, Globe, known for its value for money, continued to perform well. Index and Ozoc also began to recover. Among the fashion commodity stores primarily found in shopping centers, brands like Hash Hash and Sankansion struggled due to intensifying competition. In the men's category, Takeo Kikuchi, a core brand with Takeo Kikuchi returning as creative director, successfully expanded its customer base. Also performing well were select store brands like Shoe LaLou, Opaque.Clip, and Flaxus, which have built platforms optimized for individual exhibitions according to channel. Shoe LaLou, which is promoting franchise expansion, opened 12 stores in major regional supermarkets within one year of launch. Furthermore, its own e-commerce site, World Online Store, continued to grow strongly, increasing 34.7% year-on-year.
Next fiscal year, we will continue to focus on retail-style SPA, with stores as the starting point. We will clarify our brand identity and strive to provide attractive value in preparation for the development and renewal of commercial facilities. We also plan to expand our production locations beyond China to address the risks of currency fluctuations and rising costs.
