Komehyo opens flagship luxury second-hand store

Komehyo opens flagship luxury second-hand store

Venture with Saha targets sales of B54m in first year

From left Mr Takeo, Mr Ishihara and Mr Vichai in the Komehyo store on the second floor of Central@CentralWorld.
From left Mr Takeo, Mr Ishihara and Mr Vichai in the Komehyo store on the second floor of Central@CentralWorld.

Second-hand luxury goods vendor Komehyo yesterday opened its first flagship store in Bangkok with local partner Saha Group, the consumer goods conglomerate.

The store is operated by Saha Komehyo, a joint venture of Japan's Komehyo and Saha Group's holding firm, Saha Pathana Inter-Holding (SPI), which was set up in December 2018 with initial registered capital of 140 million baht. SPI holds a 51% stake in the joint venture, while the Japanese firm holds 49%.

The store is located on the second floor of Central@CentralWorld.

Takuji Ishihara, president of Komehyo, said more than 400 second-hand watches, bags and accessories are available at the store, while 600 items are sold via the online channel. The store also buys second-hand luxury items.

"We expanded into Thailand because we see a huge opportunity," he said yesterday. "There are fewer players in the market. More importantly, Thai tourists are the top customers at Komehyo branches in Japan after the Chinese."

The Japanese branches with the highest number of Thai customers are in Shinjuku, Ginza and Nagoya.

Hideo Takeo, managing director of Saha Komehyo, said Thai customers spend about 150 million baht a year on used items at Komehyo in Japan, with average spending of 100,000 baht per person. Hot items are Hermes bags and Patek Philippe watches.

Komehyo has sold various used products in Japan for over 70 years. In 2012, the company expanded into Hong Kong's wholesale segment. It also provides management for used products in China under a Chinese brand.

There are 39 Komehyo branches in Japan.

Mr Takeo said developing a second-hand brand-name retailer not only creates a form of a sharing economy in Thailand, but also addresses counterfeit goods and overspending habits.

Vichai Kulsomphop, president of SPI, said the joint venture spent 5 million baht on the first Komehyo store, spanning 90 square metres.

The company aims to fetch sales of 54 million baht from the Komehyo store in the first year of operations.

"The opening of Komehyo is part of SPI's strategy to extend its portfolio beyond garments and food," Mr Vichai said.

Mr Takeo said Komehyo's international business remains relatively small and he is hopeful Thailand can be a strategic market to propel overseas operations.

The market for second-hand luxury items in Thailand is estimated at 2 billion baht a year, while the Japanese used luxury products market is valued at up to ¥250 billion (69 billion baht).

The company plans to open three or four Komehyo stores in Thailand and achieve sales of 100-120 million baht in the next three years.

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