One result of Mr. Shinzo Abe's return to economic policymaking as prime minister is a huge upsurge in luxury goods sales. An official at Sogo and Seibu, the department store unit of retail giant Seven and I Holdings, said that sales of luxury goods have skyrocketed.
According to Sogo and Seibu, its Ikebukuro stores enjoyed a 30 pecent increase in the sales of luxury brand items compared with a year earlier. Sales in the first 20 days of February were up 90 percent from the same period last year. This increase is due in part to a recovery from the post-3/11 drop in domestic consumption, but it also shows that luxury-loving shoppers who can afford expensive items are no longer afraid to buy what they desire.
The Sogo and Seibu announcement noted that certain luxury goods were selling briskly this year. Sales of watches priced between ¥300,000 and ¥500,000 were strong in January and sales of watches priced ¥500,000 to ¥800,000 sold well in February. Foreign-brand clothes and goods sales surged 30 percent this year at Takashimaya stores, it was reported.