Chinese Discount Store Operator Miniso Launches Toy Shops

(Nikkei Asia) — Miniso, a Chinese operator of discount stores, is diversifying its business with the launch of toy shops, hoping to draw in young shoppers and families.

In an interview with Nikkei, Miniso founder and Chief Executive Ye Guofu said, “We aim to diversify [our] brands and become a new platform-style company in the retail industry.”

The company’s goal is to capture demand from young consumers by increasing new formats while expanding its mainstay discount stores in China and overseas.

On a mid-January day, a Toptoy store in a commercial complex in Guangzhou was crowded with young shoppers and families with small children. The 420 square meter shop displays over 1,500 products, including popular figurines and “blind boxes” that contain mystery toys.

Since Miniso launched Toptoy mid-December, the company has opened seven such stores. Ye said, “Toy demand from young consumers has been growing fast and we had prepared for the launch for over a year to target them.”

Founded in 2013, Miniso sells household and consumer goods under the brand names of Miniso in English and Meiso in Japanese. It has grown through extensive store openings under franchises and successful product planning in tie-ups with some of the world’s leading brands, including Disney and Hello Kitty. It listed its shares on the New York Stock Exchange in October.

The Chinese retailer has operations in over 80 countries and territories, with shops totaling 2,633 in China and 1,697 outside of China at the end of September.

Ye said, “We aim to open new stores mainly in countries with populations totaling at least 50 million.” India, Indonesia, the U.S., Colombia, Mexico, Egypt and Spain are within its sights. In China, the company is aiming to open shops in rural areas.

Like all retailers in the world, Miniso faces the risk that the Covid-19 pandemic could continue to hammer economies. The net increase in Miniso stores was 90 in China and 29 overseas in the period from the end of 2019 to the end of last September, far lower than pre-pandemic times.

Ye would not reveal store opening targets in 2021 and beyond, only saying that “Covid-19 makes it difficult to predict the future.”

Miniso has been criticized in Japan for allegedly imitating the logos and other aspects of Japanese rival brands, including Uniqlo, Muji and Daiso. Ye said, “I respect those [Japanese] brands, but there is a big difference between them and Miniso, and we have focused efforts to create unique designs.”

Miniso operates a few outlets in Japan including in the Aeon Mall shopping malls. “I want to open more outlets and attract Japanese consumers to see our products,” he said.

This article was originally published by Nikkei Asia

Contact editor Yang Ge (geyang@caixin.com)

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