Printemps Ginza closes after 32 years of operation

The Printemps Ginza department store closed Saturday after 32 years of doing business in central Tokyo’s famed Ginza shopping district with the expiration of its contract with its French licensee.

Most of the building will be refurbished and reopen on March 15 as Marronnier Gate, a new commercial complex. But some stores in the building including a Uniqlo clothing shop will continue operating from Monday.

Printemps Ginza opened in April 1984 under a tie-up between the famed French department store Printemps and the Japanese supermarket chain Daiei Inc.

But when Daiei began experiencing financial trouble, the Yomiuri Shimbun in 2002 took a 70 percent stake in the department store while what is now Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd. acquired 30 percent.

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