Japan’s Convenience-Store Sales Rise the Most in Eight Years

Despite a drooping economy in 2008, Japan saw its fastest rise in convenience-store sales in eight years after a new law was issued, restricting access to tobacco products in vending machines. That sent smokers to 7-Eleven and other convenience stores.

Smokers flocked to convenience stores to buy tobacco and other goods after a law in July required a smart card known as Taspo to purchase cigarettes at vending machines. The recession is also drawing budget-conscious consumers to the shops, where they can buy essentials without traveling far, analysts said.

“Besides the Taspo effect, convenience stores do well in a recession,” said Dairo Murata, a retail analyst at Credit Suisse Group in Tokyo. “Consumers don’t want to spend a lot and go far to shop.”  [via Bloomberg]