Japan’s FamilyMart sets expansion plan in Southeast Asia
Masaaki Kosaka, managing director of FamilyMart Co., said the goal is to open 1,500 new stores in Japan this year. That figure, a 16-percent rise from 2013, will bring the total to 11,745 stores in Japan by year-end.
Internationally, the company plans to add 1,000 new stores: 300 in Thailand, 200 to 300 in China, 80 in Vietnam and the rest in other countries. Once complete, the expansion will raise the number of overseas FamilyMart stores to 14,017.
As of year-end 2013, Thailand had 1,048 FamilyMart stores, making it the fifth-biggest market for the chain in terms of store numbers after Japan (10,245), South Korea (7,923), Taiwan (2,903) and China (1,064).
Junichi Yamashita, senior executive officer at FamilyMart Co., said Thailand was chosen as the springboard to branch out in Asean and Indochina because of its central location. In addition, many Japanese manufacturers are nearby to supply merchandise to FamilyMart.
“Thailand is the role model for convenience-store business in this region,” Yamashita said. “The country has advanced in many aspects, from store concept and merchandise to customer service.”
The FamilyMart Academy in Thailand has been set up as the Asean training centre to prepare workers for further growth in Asean. Moreover, the company is considering making FamilyMart products in Thailand and exporting them to the network throughout Asean.
Source: businessmirror.com.ph
