Inside Japanese supermarket SEIYU | Shopping in Japan Walmart

Japanese group of supermarkets, shopping centers and department stores. The group was established in December 1946, and was formed in 1956 by Seibu Department Stores, a group company of Seibu Railway. In 1980, Seiyu launched its private brand Mujirushi-Ryōhin (commonly known as MUJI outside Japan). MUJI was transferred to the Ryohin Keikaku Company[5] in 1990, and is no longer part of Seiyu. On December 31, 2003, Seiyu and the US retail chain Walmart signed a partnership agreement in which Walmart would teach global supply chain practices.[6] Numazu, Shizuoka was the site of the first Seiyu store using Walmart methods.[6] Walmart bought a 37 percent stake in Seiyu in 2003,[7] and according to a company press release,[8] in late 2005, Walmart acquired a majority stake in the company, which it has since increased to 100% ownership in 2008.[9] Previously, the company had a registered office in Higashi-Ikebukuro, Toshima, Tokyo.[10] In 2019, Walmart named Lionel Desclée, formerly of Delhaize and the Belgian pet shop chain Tom&Co, president and CEO of both Seiyu and Walmart Japan. In remarks after his appointment, he said Walmart had no interest in selling Seiyu.[11] However, that June, Walmart outlined plans to relist Seiyu on the stock market.[12] Over the 2019-2020 period, Seiyu comparative-store sales grew 180 basis points faster than the market and EBITDA increased by nearly 40%. In addition, Rakuten Seiyu Netsuper, jointly operated by Seiyu and Rakuten, recorded a nearly 40% year-on-year increase in gross merchandise sales in the fourth quarter of 2020.[13] In 2020, Walmart announced they would be selling 65% of their shares in the company to private-equity firm KKR in a deal valuing 329 stores and 34,600 employees at $1.6 billion. Walmart is supposed to retain 15% and a seat on the board, while Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten Inc. will receive 20%.