Japanese retailer Seven & I Holdings booked flat profits for its 2009 fiscal year as annual revenue fell by almost 2%.
The company booked operating profit of JPY281.9bn (US$2.82bn) for the year to the end of February, a rise of only 0.3% from JPY281.1bn a year earlier.
Turnover dipped 1.8% to JPY5.65 trillion as Seven & I saw the Japanese economy’s slide into recession weigh on its sales.
Seven & I’s net profit fell 29.3% to JPY92.34bn as the company lapped figures from a year earlier, which were boosted by one-off items.
Looking ahead, Seven & I sees its operating profit during its fiscal 2010 year rising 1.1%.
The company has set out a series of initiatives, including introducing ‘100-yen’ fixed price concepts.
The retailer has also extended the reach of its 800-plus private-label product line to all of its large food outlets – mostly in department stores such as Sogo in Yokohama and Hiroshima.
The company also plans to convert 20 of its Ito-Yokado supermarkets in Japan to the new The Price discount supermarket format by the end of 2009.
Earlier this week, Seven & I also announced plans to expand its business into Indonesia through a franchise agreement.
