BEIJING (Bloomberg) Aeon Co., Japan's largest supermarket operator and owner of the Jusco chain, said Tuesday it may invest 15 billion yuan ($1.97 billion) to increase its stores in China to 100 in the next five years.
The retailer's China stores may earn as much as $5 billion in revenue by 2012, Senior Vice President Akihito Tanaka, head of Aeon's China operations, said in Beijing.
Aeon, aiming to open its first Beijing outlet next year, will combine its Jusco supermarkets with Aeon Credit Services Co., specialty shops and restaurants, Tanaka said.
Aeon plans to develop shopping centers in China around its flagship Jusco stores to attract customers and compete with Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Carrefour SA. Aeon is expanding its business outside Japan, where a shrinking and aging population limits growth prospects.