FUJI KEIZAI, CO., LTD, a marketing research and consulting group based at Chuo-ku, Tokyo, recently released a report that highlighted a 23.4% increase in sales of high-quality hamburgers in 2015 over the previous year. The Japanese market of premium burgers, most of which are being sold for around 1000 to 1500 yen, grew to as much as 5.8 billion yen last year.
US popular hamburger restaurants joined the Japanese market one after another in 2015, where Japanese competitors of chain shops have turned to increasingly introduce a premium line of burgers.
According to the FUJI KEIZAI, the Japanese market of hamburger is continuing to grow because of its topicality and high level of meat quality.
In 2016 sales of hamburgers in Japan are expected to further increase to 7.2 billion yen, 24.1 percent more than this year.
A restaurant originated in the United States, serving premium burgers made with 100% “Angus beef” to guests, plans to open its restaurant in downtown Tokyo, which is expected to make a contribution to further expansion of the market.
On the other hand, the total sales of “ton-katsu” (pork cutlet) and “katsu-don” (rice topped with pork cutlet) reached to 38.1 billion yen, 21.3 % up, in the Japanese market where their unit prices range from 400 yen to 1500 yen. The market is expected to grow by 16.5 % to 44.4 billion yen in 2016.
The FUJI KEIZAI made these estimates on the basis of interviews with people of restaurants and chain shops in the country during three months from May to July.