Japan’s Biggest Furniture And Home Furnishing Chain Nitori Opens 1st PH Store

Nitori Company, Ltd., Japan’s largest furniture and home furnishing chain with over 900 stores, has opened its first store in the Philippines at Mitsukoshi Bonifacio Global City (BGC) in Taguig City.

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Alfredo Pascual emphasized that Nitori is one of the companies that submitted a Letter of Intent (LOI) to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. during the president’s official visit to Japan in December 2023. I Photo: DTI Philippines Facebook

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Alfredo Pascual emphasized that Nitori is one of the companies that submitted a Letter of Intent (LOI) to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. during the president’s official visit to Japan in December 2023.

The DTI noted that the Japanese retail giant’s expansion in the Philippines marks “a significant DTI investment promotion achievement.”

The department also stated that before the affirmation of Nitori’s investment plans in the Philippines through the LOI submitted to the Chief Executive, the DTI attached agency Board of Investments (BOI) and the Philippine Trade and Investment Center-Tokyo (PTIC-Tokyo) have been engaging with the Japanese company since 2015 as a VIP Buyer at the Manila FAME trade exhibition.

“The PTIC-Tokyo continued discussions, exploring trade opportunities and potential investments in the Philippines. Meanwhile, the BOI further solidified the relationship by facilitating a meeting at Nitori's headquarters during a strategic investment promotion mission to Japan in November 2022,” the DTI underscored.

Pascual expressed support for Nitori’s expansion plans in the Philippines, as the company reportedly aims to have 50 stores in the country by 2032, with all these stores creating jobs for Filipinos and catering to the growing consumer base.

The DTI chief also urged the Japanese firm to consider making the Philippines its sourcing hub for its furniture and home accessories products.

Nitori has a total of 979 stores, of which 172 are outside Japan, particularly in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and now, in the Philippines.

Nitori is said to be eyeing to operate 2,000 overseas locations by 2032, with 1 trillion yen ($6.64 billion) in target total sales.