The Japanese have long had the reputation as intrepid camera-wielding tourists who travel the world to shop.
Favored Japanese shopping hot spots, such as Hawaii, Guam and Saipan, however, have seen continued dips in tourist numbers.
Last year, Japanese arrivals to Hawaii dropped 9.4 percent to 1.4 million from 1.5 million in the previous year, according to preliminary 2006 statistics from Hawaii’s Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism.
For the year, Japanese visitors to Hawaii spent $2.1 billion, a 6.5 percent decrease compared with the previous year. However, Japanese tourists still spent the most on a daily basis at $267 a person, a 4.7 percent jump.
December numbers painted a more dire picture. Total expenditure fell 20.6 percent for the month to $169 million. Spending per person for the month fell 3.9 percent to $256.10 and spending per group trip fell 7.3 percent to $1,437.
“In terms of Japanese spending on luxury goods, I think it has been gradually deteriorating both domestically and overseas, with the exception of some brands, due to the weak yen,” said an analyst in Japan for Deutsche Bank who did not want to be identified. “Of course, opening of flagship stores in Japan could be one of the reasons for a weaker spending trend on luxury goods overseas. But the major reason for this is because of the weak yen.”
Nevertheless, Prada still thanks the Japanese for the majority of its business in the mid-Pacific and has made up for the loss of some travelers with boosts from elsewhere.
“We have more than compensated for a drop in Japanese traffic with growth in business from local customers,” said Sebastian Suhl, chief executive officer of the Asia-Pacific region for Prada.
The Italian luxury brand has five stores in Hawaii, which includes its newly renovated two-level freestanding flagship on Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki. It’s the only luxury brand to occupy an entire historic colonial building in Waikiki.
“The store was reopened in August 2006 and has enjoyed considerable attention from the local Hawaiian and Japanese press,” Suhl said.
In addition to local clientele, there are more Mainland Chinese and Koreans visiting the luxury shops in Hawaii, Guam and Saipan, but they aren’t spending much money yet, said an industry insider.
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In Guam, Japanese visitors dropped 4 percent in November 2006 to 78,031 from 81,059, according to the Guam Visitors Bureau. This followed drops in September and October, as well as in April, May and June. Meanwhile, in that same month, visitors from China jumped 16 percent to 72 people and Hong Kong tourists jumped 49 percent to 649.
Saipan had a 26 percent drop in Japanese tourist arrivals in 2006 with 270,000 visitors compared with 368,000 the previous year, according to CNMI Customs. China and South Korea, meanwhile, both saw jumps in visitor numbers to the small island: 12 percent and 20 percent, respectively.
“Generally speaking, we have been very satisfied with our business in both Guam and Saipan, notwithstanding the decreasing Japanese tourist numbers,” Prada’s Suhl said. “We still find that Japanese traffic is quite heavy in our stores in both of these territories.”
Prada has one store each in Guam and Saipan.
The Italian luxury brand is also experiencing what Suhl calls uptrading in the two territories. The phenomenon of selling increasingly higher-ticket and higher-fashion items is seen in many markets around the world, he said. This, along with growing local business, has led to merchandise mix assortments that include product and color selections and necessary sizing adjustments, he added.
So, while fewer people might be spending money, their purchases are of higher value, offsetting the lower visitor numbers.