After a decline during the 1997-2003 period, the market for household appliances is recovering since 2004 and probably will reach again the 1997 level (22 million units) between 2006 and 2007.

A large, and growing population of unmarried adults and the generation of baby boomers (born between 1971-1974), used to live in an affluent country, contribute to the consumption of appliances.

This market research report studies the major appliances and kitchen furniture market in Japan.

In a first part, the appliances market is analysed.

Basic data and trend are given for production, consumption, imports and exports of appliances for the years, 2001-2005.

Moreover, the international trade is broken down by product (Refrigerators and freezers, Microwaves, Ranges/hobs and ovens, Clothes washers and driers, Dishwashers, Hoods).

Profiles of the main Japanese appliances manufacturers include a company description, product breakdown, total sales, recent facts and market shares.

Companies are: Matsushita Electric Industrial – Panasonic, Hitachi, Sanyo Electric, Sharp Corporation, Daikin Industries, Mitsubishi Electric, Toshiba.

The chapter on distribution of major appliances outlines the main distribution channels and provides short profiles of the leading distribution chains, which are: Yamada Denki, Edion Corporation, Yodobashi Camera, Best Denki, Bic Camera, Joshin Denki, Kojima, Laox.

Furthermore, reference prices are given for the following products: Refrigerators and freezers, Cooking appliances, Washing appliances.

The second (and somewhat smaller) part is dedicated to the kitchen furniture market in Japan.

Production and consumption are given in value and quantity for 2002 and 2006 while imports and exports by country and by geographical area cover the years from 2001 to 2006.

A short company profile of the top 5 players present in the Japanese kitchen furniture market is included, for the companies Sunwave, Cleanup, JS Group (Tostem, Inax), Takara Standard, Matsushita Denko (Matsushita Electrical).

Estimated kitchen turnover, market share and turnover per employee are provided.In the last chapter one finds a few notes on the kitchen furniture distribution, a list of trade fairs and magazines and a qualitative description of the typical Japanese kitchen.An addresslist of the mentioned companies is included.

Selected companies

Best Denki, Bic Camera, Cleanup, Daikin Industries, Edion Corporation, Hitachi, Joshin Denki, JS Group – Tostem, Inax, Kojima, Laox, Matsushita Denko – Matsushita Electrical, Matsushita Electric Industrial – Panasonic, Mitsubishi Electric, Sanyo Electric, Sharp Corporation, Sunwave, Takara Standard, Toshiba, Yamada Denki, Yodobashi Camera