Supermarket operator Lopia probed over unfair trade
According to the sources, Lopia had its suppliers dispatch workers to its stores to perform tasks related to product displays, sales support and product restocking without compensation on the occasion of store openings and refurbishment from at least 2022.
Suppliers are believed to have suffered disadvantages that exceeded the benefits of opportunities to promote their own products because they often had to display other companies' products as well.
Given their relations with Lopia, suppliers had little choice but to accede to the company's request. As such, Lopia is being investigated for abusing its dominant position, an offense under the antimonopoly law.
Lopia, based in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, has opened some 50 stores across the country since September 2022 and plans to open more. The rapid growth boosted its workload, which it may have been passed on to suppliers.
According to its website and other information, Lopia operates 118 stores in 19 prefectures, as well as seven stores in Taiwan. Its overall sales reached about ¥320 billion ($2.2 billion) in the year ended February 2024.
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