Understanding the Japanese Food &  Beverage Retail Evaluation Flow

January 2026

In the Japanese Food & Beverage retail market, Japanese retailers tend to evaluate products in this order: Price → Appearance (Packaging)→ Taste → Defferenciation

1. Price determines feasibility

2. Appearance (Packaging) influences first impressions on the shelf

3. Taste drives repeat purchased

4. Differentiation supports long-term positioning. 

While taste is critical for repeat purchases, Japanese buyers tend to prioritise price and packaging first, as these factors determine initial acceptance at retail. 

I will focus on the Price here. For some import speciality stores (e.g.Seijo Ishii) where many international food & beverage products are sold, the standard in-store margin is approximately 40%, making pricing is a key factor.

For example, if the retails price is set at 600 yen (£2.80*) for a 200g product the local wholesale price would be 360 yen (£1.68). There are also obvious costs that need to be added before setting the wholesale price for this market: logistics, Japanese import duties, consumption tax (10%), and a local distributor's profit. (*£1.00 = 214 JPY, mid- Jan 2026)

For those food & beverage manufacturers that sell successfully in the UK and overseas and looking to export to Japan, this information may be a good indicator when deciding whether it's worth trying to break into the market. If you think yoru products are competitive enough for the this market, do get in touch so we can work together.