On the 27th, Takashimaya announced that Director Miharu Koezuka will be promoted to Senior Managing Director (Representative Director) effective September 1st. This marks the first time a woman has been appointed Representative Director at the company. As Senior Managing Director, Koezuka will spearhead a wide range of responsibilities, including General Manager of the Planning Division (Reform Promotion Division) and General Affairs Division, CSR Promotion Office, IT Promotion Office, and Nihonbashi Redevelopment Planning Office (planned).

Born in 1955, Koezuka is 57 years old. After joining Takashimaya in 1979 and gaining experience in the retail sector, she served as Division Manager of the Merchandise Division 2, Executive Officer, General Manager of the Public Relations and Investor Relations Office, and Senior Executive Officer, General Manager of the Sales Planning Department. In February 2010, she was appointed President and Store Manager of Okayama Takashimaya. She implemented various reforms based on her unique female perspective, and in the fiscal year ending February this year, the company returned to profitability for the first time in five years. Her skills were recognized, and she was recently promoted to Takashimaya's director on May 21st of this year. She was promoted to senior managing director just over three months later.

Takashimaya has been working toward becoming a gender-equal company from early on, and has steadily increased the proportion of women in core roles such as managers and buyers. In 2012, women accounted for more than half of full-time employees, and there is also a track record of women being promoted to executive positions. Even so, the appointment of a female executive to representative director is unprecedented. Looking across major department stores, this is the first time a career-long female employee has been appointed to the position. Attention is focused on how Koezuka will steer Takashimaya as it moves forward with structural reforms in its department store business.