Reporting and analysis on retail, e-commerce, and consumer trends in Japan, updated continuously by our newsroom.
Japan’s SoftBank and ZTE have teamed up to trial 5G over 4.5-GHz spectrum in metropolitan areas of Tokyo. SoftBank and ZTE will work to verify the performance of ZTE 5G end-to-end network equipment in sub 6-GHz spectrum under real-world conditions in a major,…
The International Institute of Diamond Grading & Research (IIDGR) has partnered with Japanese bridal-jewelry retailer I-PRIMO to provide it with polished grading reports. The De Beers-owned laboratory will grade diamonds showcased at all 68 I-PRIMO stores in…
L&K Cosmetic CEO Kwon Yong-soo hopes to turn the company into one of Asia’s leading beauty brands by expanding its private label product lineup. Kwon, 50, started his business in 1993 as a Seoul-based cosmetics retailer, going through a series of ups and…
Digital Realty has inaugurated Digital Osaka 1, its first data center in Japan, a 93,000 square foot facility providing 7.6 megawatts of IT capacity. Digital Realty also announced the acquisition of an adjacent land parcel for the development of a Digital…
Japan’s NTT Corporation, parent company of NTT Communications, is reportedly considering the sale of its African operations and could seek around $800 million for the assets. NTT is evaluating a sale of the African operations it acquired through the takeover…
Jimmy Choo’s 140 square-meter flagship dual gender store in Omotesando Hills Mall, Tokyo, Japan introduces its open floor plan with 2 grand facades. The main façade invites people from the street to enter the luxury store to experience a unique design…
Bango, the leading mobile payments company, announces that it has enabled a new payment method for Amazon customers in Japan. Amazon customers with a KDDI or NTT DOCOMO mobile phone account can now pay for physical goods from Amazon.co.jp, by charging the…
Japan’s three major mobile operators plan to invest a combined 5 trillion yen ($45.5 billion) towards deploying 5G services nationwide, with NTT DoCoMo targeting nationwide coverage by as early as 2023. The Nikkei Asian Review reports that DoCoMo, KDDI and…
YouAppi, a leading mobile growth marketing platform for premium mobile brands, today announced an integration with leading Supply Side Platforms for smartphone applications and web (SSPs) Ad Generation (Supership Inc.) and Geniee SSP (Geniee, Inc.). These…
A startup backed by the Japanese automaker has developed a test model that engineers hope will eventually develop into a tiny car with a driver who’ll be able to light the Olympic torch in the 2020 Tokyo games. For now, however, the project is a concoction of…
While Japanese social media consumption patterns are similar to those in the United States with significant popularity of Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, one local platform dominates all of them: LINE. Originally popularized as a phone replacement when…
The convenience store chain reportedly plans to open 100 stores in Vietnam in the next three years. Seven & i Holdings, which operates Japan’s biggest convenience store chain 7-Eleven, will open its first outlet in Ho Chi Minh City this month, according to…
Toyota Motor Corp said on Saturday it had sold all shares in Tesla Inc by the end of 2016, having canceled its tie-up with the U.S. luxury automaker to jointly develop electric vehicles. Japan’s biggest automaker had bought around a 3 percent stake in the…
Satellite operator Intelsat has warned it expects its planned $14 billion merger with SoftBank-backed OneWeb to fall through. Debt-land Intelsat disclosed it has failed to get enough of its creditors to accept the deal, which would have required debt…
GECOM, a manufacturer of automotive door locking components, plans to expand its operations in Greensburg, Indiana. The company plans to create up to 30 new jobs by 2019. The company, which is a subsidiary of Japan-based Mitsui Kinzoku ACT, will invest $26.29…
Los Angeles eyewear brand Dita has opened its latest Tokyo store this week, marking its second Japanese and global location. Located in the capital’s Minami Aoyama 5-chome, the Dita store covers 69 square metres andrepresents Dita’s latest retail concept,…
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