Lawson Opens Small Supermarket in Tokyo

Tokyo, May 28 (Jiji Press)–Lawson Inc. opened a small supermarket offering fresh produce and other goods at reasonable prices in Kodaira, Tokyo, on Thursday, the first such outlet run by the major Japanese convenience store chain. The supermarket, named “L Minimart,” aims to attract budget-conscious consumers amid rising prices. Lawson plans to open two more L Minimart stores in June–one in Tokyo’s Itabashi Ward and the other in the city of Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, adjacent to Tokyo. The company will consider further store openings based on sales performance and local needs. L Minimart will be launched by renovating some Lawson Store 100 outlets, the company’s low-priced convenience stores. The supermarket, which is open from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. in principle, is expected to have a larger sales space than Lawson Store 100 for vegetables, meats, eggs and “natto” fermented soybean products. Competition among small supermarkets is intensifying in the Tokyo metropolitan area. Retail giant Aeon Co. is accelerating openings of My Basket stores. Trial Holdings Inc., a retail group in Fukuoka Prefecture, southwestern Japan, is expanding into Tokyo, where it is launching Trial Go outlets. Last year, Trial acquired supermarket operator Seiyu Co., which has stores mainly in Tokyo and neighboring areas. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]