The Japan Council for Shopping Centres (JCSC) completed a survey of developers last month and found that just 27 new malls are expected to open in 2024, compared to 34 in 2023.
More had been scheduled to open but have been delayed. Within Tokyo, just four major malls are planned and in Kanagawa too four malls are due. Rather than new malls, mall operators will focus more on refurbishment to provide more experiential value as well as better facilities for workers – amidst a labour shortage, employee retention has become a major theme for developers.
SEE ALSO: Tumi opens first APAC flagship in Tokyo’s Omotesando district
Shopping mall sales continue to improve. In November, like-for-like sales rose 8.9 percent but non-anchor tenant sales rose 10.5 percent compared to 3.5 percent for anchor tenants.
This follows strong gains in the summer but somewhat muted growth in the Autumn, in part because of sustained higher temperatures which impacted sales of Autumn/Winter clothing. Colder weather and the impact of Black Friday in the second half of the month helped boost sales.
SEE ALSO: Tom Wood opens first international store in Japan
Compared to 2019, there was an overall decrease of 0.1 percent but non-anchor tenants exceeded 2019 sales. Malls in major urban areas saw an overall increase of 11.5 percent and suburban malls 7.8 percent. The larger cities in central regions performed particularly well due to visits from domestic and foreign tourists.
(Source: Japan Consuming)