Sogo & Seibu announced Thursday that it will boost the range of luxury branded goods, cosmetics and food products at its flagship Seibu Ikebukuro department store in Tokyo when renovations are completed next year.
The Japanese company aims to provide added value with the Seibu Ikebukuro store, such as an extraordinary sense of excitement and shopping for special occasions, said Jin Ryu, representative director of Sogo & Seibu.
The store plans to reopen the renovated spaces in phases starting early next year, with the store fully opening in the summer.
While the store will halve the floor space of the department store, it will increase the sales area for luxury brand items by a factor of 1.3, providing space for approximately 60 stores.
The renovated store will sell about 60 cosmetic brands and the basement grocery floor will be improved.
The store will also feature an outlet for electronics retailer Yodobashi Camera. Ryu said the store aims to capitalize on Yodobashi’s ability to attract foreign visitors, as well as male and family customers.
In September last year, the American investment fund Fortress Investment Group acquired Sogo & Seibu from the Japanese retailer Seven & I Holdings.
The fund sold the Ikebukuro store’s real estate to Yodobashi Holdings, with which it partnered in negotiations to buy Sogo & Seibu.
The Sogo & Seibu union attracted attention by organizing the first strike in the department store industry in 61 years, amid concerns about possible job losses.
