Seibu Shibuya closes doors after 58 years

The Seibu Shibuya department store, which has been operating in Tokyo's Shibuya district for 58 years, closed its doors on Wednesday.

The store has been a symbol of Shibuya, an area known for setting cultural and fashion trends. Its closure will leave the district without a major department store.

Seibu Shibuya opened in 1968. Besides introducing numerous foreign luxury brands to Japan, the store had sales floors featuring products of young Japanese designers.

Sales at the store peaked in fiscal 1990 at 96.7 billion yen.

Last year, sales declined to about 40 billion yen due to factors including competition from commercial facilities in the area and the expansion of online shopping.

Furthermore, in August last year, the owners of the land and buildings, who want to redevelop the site, asked the company to vacate the property. The company continued negotiations in an effort to keep the store open, but the two sides failed to reach an agreement, and it was forced to close.

The sections closing include buildings A and B, in which the department store operates. On Wednesday, the store's final day of business, a closing sale was held and many shoppers visited.

A woman in her 70s said that she really loved the store as it always had the latest in not only fashion but also art. She said the clothes she was wearing were bought at the store and that its closure leaves her feeling very sad.

A man in his 60s said that it was the kind of store where you could find the latest trends. He said that when he was a university student, he would save up whatever he could to buy clothes there. He said he wants the site to once again become a place where young people gather.

The lifestyle goods retailer Loft and other businesses are expected to remain open for the time being in nearby buildings the company owns. The company says it will continue to employ people working at the Seibu Shibuya store by transferring them to other stores and locations.

According to a person involved, the corporation that owns the land and buildings, along with others, is expected to take the lead in redeveloping the site.