Top Message
A year that started with a focus on people to realize Purpose
In FY2023 we took new steps towards realizing our purpose, “Beyond innovation, for a beautiful smile!” I look back on a year in which we have worked together with all employees to discuss and advance what is needed to realize our Purpose.
When I consider realizing our Purpose, it is inevitable to think that human resources are what realize it and materialize it. I have long believed that people are the treasure of our company, and we have communicated this to our stakeholders. The establishment of the Purpose reaffirms this belief. A company is all about its philosophy and the people who gather there, and the successful synchronization of these will create a successful business. It is our human resources that support our products, services, and all our business. Therefore, I feel that taking care of employees and their families is more important than anything else for the future of the company. Investment in human capital is essential for the sustainable improvement of corporate value. In the last fiscal year, we formulated the Human Resource Development Policy and the Internal Environment Development Policy in order to make each employee understand the concept better. We declare that all employees have dreams, aspirations and growth, and that we respect the personality, individuality, human rights and diversity of each and every person who works for us, and we will promote the creation of a workplace that can realize healthy and flexible working styles through the creation of a culture in which employees feel a sense of fulfilment.
Formulation of Environmental Policy and Procurement Policy. Bringing environmental perspectives to business
Since our founding, we have been engaged in the fields of beauty and health. All of the products we carry have their key ingredients derived from nature and are closely related to changes in the natural environment. The recent increase in extreme weather and natural disasters, which are said to be caused by global warming, could have a major impact on our products manufacturing. Perfect One has a range of products that are multifunctional. For example, our main products, the PERFECT ONE All-in-One Gel series, combines more than six functions. It has also been considered to contribute to a resource-saving measure since the beginning of the sales. In addition, we will continue to make efforts for environmental considerations, such as the use of certified forest paper and recycled paper for the packaging, which is certified as being made from properly managed forest wood, and a switch to mail delivery for delivery in conjunction with sales of refills. In the last fiscal year, we formulated the Environmental Policy. One of its objectives is to encourage employees to add an environmental perspective when considering products and services in the future. Once again, products and services are created by people. I believe that if everyone working at our company keeps in mind that our corporate activities are friendly to the global environment, we will be able to fulfill our social responsibility, develop our human resources, and further evolve our products. At the same time, we formulated our Procurement Policy. We owe our business to our many partners. We will continue to work to preserve the global environment throughout our supply chain with the cooperation of our partners.
Aiming for sustainable improvement of corporate value
In November 2021, we announced our medium-term business plan, VISION2025, and in FY2023, the second year of the plan, net sales, operating profit, and ordinary profit all exceeded those of the previous fiscal year. In the mail order cosmetics segment, which has continued to perform well despite the COVID-19 pandemic, we have continued to receive high praise from customers even after the lifting of restrictions on activities, particularly for our All-in-One Gel series. PERFECT ONE FOCUS, which is expected to be a pillar of our developing brands, achieved net sales growth, mainly through EC malls, and significantly exceeded the plan at the beginning of the fiscal year, as a result of the launch of limited design products featuring popular characters among people in their teens and 20s, as well as collaboration measures with influencers. In the healthcare sector, sales of W no Kenko Aojiru (Doubly Healthy Green Drink), a food with functional claims, are driving net sales growth, with the acquisition of new customers in EC increasing further. While consumption by foreign visitors to Japan is recovering, we also promoted initiatives such as the launching of sales of PERFECT ONE at drug stores, the expansion of store bases handling PERFECT ONE FOCUS, and the re-stocking of our products at airport duty-free stores. With regard to overseas sales, although there are differences in progress between countries due to the trend of lifting restrictions on activities in each country following the COVID-19 pandemic, net sales have remained at the same level as the previous year due to the expansion of sales in Taiwan. In July, we established a subsidiary in the United States with an eye to full-scale expansion into the United States. The COVID-19 pandemic started when we were finally about to begin our overseas expansion, and we had to revise our original plans, but we hope to use this experience to change into a more resilient and stronger company.
Following the approval of the Ordinary General Meeting of Shareholders in December 2023, we transitioned to a company with an Audit and Supervisory Committee. There are two main purposes for this transition. One is to further enhance corporate governance by making Audit and Supervisory Committee Members constitute the Board of Directors, and to achieve more transparent management by having the Audit and Supervisory Committee, the majority of whose members are Outside Directors, responsible for auditing and supervising the legality and appropriateness of the execution of duties of Directors of the Board. The other is to speed up management decision-making and business execution by delegating some important business execution decisions to Directors of the Board. With this change in institutional design, we aim to further enhance our corporate value by establishing a structure that more accurately meets the expectations of our stakeholders in Japan and overseas.
At the core of our company are "customer satisfaction," "employee happiness," and "contribution to society." Growth for these three is the reason for our existence, and our ultimate target is to implement the Mission that incorporates this without becoming a mere shell, and to make Purpose tangible. With the awareness that our efforts can affect each and every person on the planet, we will continue to conduct our business in a sustainable manner and contribute to bringing smiles to the faces of our customers every day.
President & Representative Director of the Board and Chief Executive Officer 