The Lawson Group Sweeping Transformation Executive Committee entered its fourth year of operation in FY2023. The Committee was launched to realize our Challenge 2025 medium-term vision and mark our 50th anniversary in 2025.
Now that the COVID-19 virus has been downgraded to a Category 5 infectious disease under the Infectious Diseases Act and we move further into the post-COVID era, Lawson has expended considerable effort in the third quarter of FY2023, or the nine months from March through November 2023, expanding the area company system across the country in order to realize the strategic concept for “community-based × individual customer and individual store-focused operations.” That has meant transferring more authority and discretionary power from the head office to frontline operations and pursuing various measures to help build a strong system and facilitate the dedicated pursuit of customer value creation at frontline sites that are much closer to our customers.

In the Domestic Convenience Store Business, each area company has promoted efforts to strengthen store displays, with particular attention paid to the range of products on offer and the volume of inventory, based on the strategy pursued by the Lawson Group Sweeping Transformation Executive Committee to renovate stores and expand the range of frozen foods and other daily products. We increased the number of stores offering MUJI products (something that we started in earnest in FY2022) to 12,689 stores* and increased the number of stores offering food delivery services to 4,478 stores.* We also implemented various measures as part of our HAPPY LAWSON PROJECT, which was first launched in FY2022, to encourage customers to enjoy shopping at stores that have been newly transformed by store renovations and new and extended product ranges.

As a result of the above initiatives, existing-store sales in Japan rose 4.9% year on year in the first nine months of FY2023.

With regard to our Seijo Ishii Business, sales at stores located in offices recovered from the sluggish performance they suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. On the product front, sales of daily foodstuffs as well as Seijo Ishii’s own deli items, which are prepared in-house in the Central Kitchen, proved strong, and sales of fresh foods increased at street-level stores. In November, the first store in Seijo was completely renovated as the new flagship store.

In our Entertainment-related Business, ticket handling volumes increased year on year in the first nine months thanks to the continued enthusiastic holding of more concerts and other events.

Regarding our Financial Services Business, the usage of Lawson Bank ATMs rose year on year in the first nine months as the number of people out and about increased. We have been working to expand new services that use the Lawson Bank ATM network and ATM infrastructure, and to expand the number of collaborating operators and financial institutions.

Regarding our Overseas Business, people flows have gradually recovered in China since the spread of COVID-19 infections peaked between the end of 2022 and early January 2023. While we are noting some regional differences in the pace of recovery, daily sales have increased in line with the recovery in people flows.

We will continue to strive to achieve the Lawson Group’s vision of turning our stores into “new hubs of refreshment in every community” as we approach our 50th anniversary in 2025.

Based on the third quarter performance and our future business environment, we plan to achieve full year core operating profit of 88.0 billion yen (+3.5% above plan) and profit of 50.0 billion yen (+6.4% above plan) and a 250 yen dividend per share (+6.4% above plan).
We plan to achieve the FY2025 Performance indicators of "ROE of 15% or more and EPS of 500 yen or more" set forth in Challenge 2025, two years ahead of the target year. We will continue to achieve "Recommendation No. 1".

We ask all our shareholders and investors for their understanding and support of our management strategy for the business.

* Number of stores at the end of November 2023.