Mitsukoshi, Ltd. (株式会社三越, Kabushiki-gaisha Mitsukoshi) is an international department store chain with headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. It is a subsidiary of Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings, which also owns the Isetan department store chain.

  • Mitsukoshi, Ltd.
  • 株式会社三越
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryRetail
Founded1673; 351 years ago (1673)
Edo Honmachi (Nihonbashi Hongokuchō, Chūō, Tokyo), Japan
FounderMitsui Takatoshi
Headquarters1-4-1 Nihonbashi-Muromachi, Chūō, Tokyo, Japan
ParentIsetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd. (100%)
Websitewww.mitsukoshi.co.jp
Nihonbashi main branch
Utagawa Hiroshige designed an ukiyo-e print with Mount Fuji and Echigoya as landmarks. Echigoya is the former name of Mitsukoshi named after the former province of Echigo. The Mitsukoshi headquarters are located on the left side of the street.
Nihonbashi main branch interior

History edit

It was founded in 1673 with the yagō (shop name) Echigo-ya (越後屋), selling kimono. Ten years later in 1683, Echigoya took a new approach to marketing. Instead of selling by going door-to-door, they set up a store where buyers could purchase goods on the spot with cash. Mitsukoshimae Station on the Tokyo Metro is named after the adjacent Mitsukoshi department store.

Mitsukoshi is the root of Mitsui group. In the 1970s, Mitsukoshi bought the Oriental Nakamura department store in Nagoya and re-branded them as Mitsukoshi Nagoya.

Genichiro Inokuma designed the wrapping paper in white and red.[1]

In August 2007, it was announced that Mitsukoshi would merge into Isetan, a major department store in Japan.[2] Mitsukoshi TYO: 2779 was unlisted on March 26, 2008, and on April 1, it merged with Isetan under a joint holding company called Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd. (TYO: 3099).

On April 5, 2019, Mitsukoshi announced that it would further expand its Asian presence by having a Filipino branch established by 2021 at Bonifacio Global City, in Taguig, Metro Manila, Philippines.[3] The store opened on November 18, 2022.[4]

Stores edit

Japan edit

 
Courtesy bus for customers of Mitsukoshi's main store going to Tokyo station in 1932. Mitsukoshi was the first company to offer such a service in Japan.

Stores managed by Isetan Mitsukoshi Ltd. edit

Stores managed by other companies edit

  • Sapporo Store (Chūō-ku, Sapporo) 札幌店 - Sapporo Mitsukoshi Ltd.
  • Sendai Store (Aoba-ku, Sendai) 仙台店 - Sendai Mitsukoshi Ltd.
  • Nagoya Sakae Main Branch (Naka-ku, Nagoya) 名古屋栄本店 - Nagoya Mitsukoshi Ltd.
  • Hoshigaoka Mitsukoshi (Chikusa-ku, Nagoya) 星ヶ丘三越 - Nagoya Mitsukoshi Ltd.
  • Hiroshima Mitsukoshi (Naka-ku, Hiroshima) 広島三越 - Hiroshima Mitsukoshi Ltd.
  • Takamatsu Mitsukoshi 高松三越 - Takamatsu Mitsukoshi Ltd.
  • Matsuyama Mitsukoshi 松山三越 - Matsuyama Mitsukoshi Ltd.
  • Fukuoka Mitsukoshi (Chūō-ku, Fukuoka) 福岡三越 - Iwataya Mitsukoshi Ltd.

Closed edit

China edit

 
Shin Kong Place in Suzhou, Jiangsu

Taiwan edit

The stores in Taiwan are named Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store [zh], a collaboration between the Shin Kong Group and Mitsukoshi. The first Shin Kong Mitsukoshi store opened at Nanjing Road in Taipei in 1991.

The following branches are open as of 2022:[8]

Philippines edit

Asia edit

Former stores edit

  • China: The Dalian store closed at the end of the Second World War.[10]
    • Hong Kong: The first Mitsukoshi in Hong Kong, covering 12000 sq meters on 4 levels, opened at 500 Hennessy Road, Causeway Bay on 26 August 1981. A second store opened in 1988 in the Sun Arcade in Tsim Sha Tsui, but it closed in 1995. Mitsukoshi closed its original Causeway Bay store on 17 September 2006, due to the redevelopment of Hennessy Centre.[11]
  • South Korea: In 1930, Mitsukoshi opened a department store (京城三越) in downtown Keijō (today Seoul).[12] After the liberation of Korea and the defeat of Japan in 1945, Samsung took over this store and renamed it Shinsegae (신세계; lit. "New World").[13]

Europe edit

Former stores edit

  • London (Piccadilly) - The London store opened in 1979[14] and closed in 2013.
  • Paris - Opened in 1971[14] and closed in 2010.[15]
  • Rome - Opened in 1975[14] and closed in 2021.[16]
  • Milan
  • Düsseldorf
  • Frankfurt
  • Munich

North America edit

Former Stores edit

  • New York City - Mitsukoshi opened a 10,000 sq ft boutique and restaurant in rented space in the Ritz Tower apartment building at 57th Street and Park Avenue on March 16, 1979.[18] In 1991, Mitsukoshi bought that space, as well as 30,000 sq ft of additional adjoining space, and opened a much larger outlet, which subsequently closed.[19] Mitsukoshi opened a small popup store for one week only in SoHo during New York Fashion Week in February 2014.[20]

References edit

  1. ^ "LDK: Mitsukoshi and yanase-san". Archived from the original on 2003-11-19. Retrieved 2013-04-07.
  2. ^ http://www.mitsukoshi.co.jp/pc/corp/pdf/0070823.pdf 株式会社伊勢丹と株式会社三越との共同持株会社設立による 経営統合に関するお知らせ August 23, 2007 (in Japanese)
  3. ^ Town & Country Philippines (Apr 5, 2019). "LOOK: Mitsukoshi Mall in Manila Will Have "Japanese Quality" Food and Dining Options". Esquire. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
  4. ^ "Mitsukoshi opens 1st Philippine store to promote Japanese lifestyle".
  5. ^ http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/h.php?news=mitsukoshi-to-close-six-stores-2008-09-26 Mitsukoshi to close six stores
  6. ^ "三越恵比寿店 営業終了のお知らせ | 三越店舗情報". www.mitsukoshi.mistore.jp. Retrieved 2021-04-28.
  7. ^ "三越伊勢丹海外店舗のご案内 - Overseas Store | Mitsukoshi Isetan". Archived from the original on 2022-03-24.
  8. ^ "新光三越 Shin Kong Mitsukoshi". Skm.com.tw. Retrieved 2022-05-26.
  9. ^ "Japan's Famous Mitsukoshi Mall Is Opening in BGC on November 18".
  10. ^ "China grapples with preserving reminders of Japanese occupation".
  11. ^ "Mitsukoshi pulls out of Hong Kong after 25-year run". 18 September 2006. Retrieved 7 April 2019 – via Japan Times Online.
  12. ^ "Korea hit 100 department stores in 2015". 25 November 2016.
  13. ^ "Elegance rules in Shinsegae's new temple of earthly joy". 26 February 2007.
  14. ^ a b c The Department Store in Early 20th Century Japan: Luxury, Aestheticization and Modern Life gold.ac.uk
  15. ^ "Mitsukoshi shutters flagship Paris store". 2 October 2010. Archived from the original on 2014-01-09.
  16. ^ Japan News Archived 2021-09-26 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ Mitsukoshi Cultural Representative Program "The MITSUKOSHI Cultural Representative Program". Archived from the original on 2007-03-15. Retrieved 2007-01-27.
  18. ^ "Mitsukoshi Opens Here". The New York Times. 16 March 1979. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
  19. ^ Strom, Stephanie (19 June 1991). "Noted Japanese Retailer Plans Ritz Tower Store". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
  20. ^ "Isetan Mitsukoshi opening 1-week store in New York". Nikkei Asian Review. Retrieved 7 April 2019.

External links edit