Tokyo, Aug 10 - Top Japanese retailer Seven & I Holdings Co Ltd plans to boost the number of food supermarkets by 30 percent to 300 by early 2011 to meet consumers' growing appetite for low-priced foods, the Nikkei financial daily reported on Sunday.
The retailer is expected to spend about 45 billion yen ($408.4 million) on the planned opening of supermarkets and redecoration of existing stores, Nikkei said, without citing any sources.
Seven & I officials were not immediately available to comment on the report.
High energy and food prices and sluggish wages are prompting Japanese householders to tighten their purse strings and refrain from dining out, while supermarkets are attracting consumers with foodstuffs sold under their proprietary brand.
Seven & I, which operates Seven-Eleven convenience stores at home and overseas, is facing sluggish sales at its Ito-Yokado general merchandising stores and department stores, which have a higher proportion of non-grocery items such as apparel.
The Nikkei said Seven & I will have its food supermarkets open outlets intensively in eastern and north-eastern Japan.
Last month, the company reported flat operating profit in the three months ended May and kept its full-year forecast of a 294 billion yen profit, up 4.6 percent from a year earlier.