Domestic shoppers hold Matsuya Ginza steady as duty-free sales slip
Matsuya's Ginza store edged up 0.2% in September against a tough comparison, as sales to domestic customers grew 3.3% and offset a roughly 5% fall in duty-free.
Matsuya's Ginza store posted a 0.2% year-on-year sales gain in September, according to preliminary monthly figures the company released on October 1 — a flat result against a comparison inflated by a large luxury-brand event the store held a year earlier.
Including the Asakusa store, whose sales fell 38.4%, the Ginza main store as a whole was down 1.9%. The release did not give a reason for the Asakusa decline.
The split between customers tells the story. Duty-free sales to overseas visitors fell about 5%, although within duty-free, general merchandise led by cosmetics grew 36%. Sales to domestic customers, excluding duty-free, rose 3.3%, led by jewellery and watches and menswear.
The result follows an 11.0% fall at the Ginza main store in August, which Matsuya also put down to last year's run of large luxury events. September's numbers are a preliminary flash; the company plans to publish its full September sales report on October 15.
For brands weighing space in Ginza, the useful signal is the domestic line. With duty-free still below last year, it was a 3.3% rise in sales to local shoppers, led by jewellery and watches, that kept the flagship level — a reminder that the domestic luxury customer is the steadier base when visitor spending wobbles.