Many major department stores are zeroing in on foreign tourists and other visitors exempt from paying the consumption tax if they spend over a certain amount, anticipating that sales of luxury items will plunge following the sales tax hike next Tuesday.
Department stores have enjoyed solid growth in the past few months thanks to robust sales of luxury products such as jewelry and paintings as well as a rise in foreign visitors.
Since last May, the monthly number of foreign visitors shopping at department stores has doubled on a year-on-year basis on the back of the weaker yen.