Apparel sales dip 40% at Japan department stores in March

The sharp decrease in March sales was mainly due to the government requesting people to refrain from going out, in order to stop the spread of COVID-19. The month also saw temporary store closures and shorter working hours.

The cancellation of graduation and school entry ceremonies also badly hit the apparel sales.

While womenswear sales fell 44.2 per cent to 55,719 million yen in March 2020, menswear sales declined 39.7 per cent to 19,539 million yen. Children's wear sales were down 24.9 per cent to 19,299 million yen, whereas sales of other garments decreased 27.7 per cent to 6,992 million yen, the association data showed.

Sales of shoes, bags and other items also dropped 38 per cent year-on-year to 41,683 million yen.

ALCHEMPro News Desk (RKS)