Japanese founder of Daiso chain passes awayA customer walks out from a Daiso shop at a shopping mall in Shinjuku district of TokyoTOKYO, Japan — Hirotake Yano, the Japanese 100-yen shop pioneer and founder of the Daiso chain, has died, the company said. The billionaire "passed away due to heart failure at the age of 80 in Hiroshima" on February 12, Daiso said in a statement. Five years later, tired of having to put different prices on different items, Yano launched Daiso where all goods cost 100 yen (less than P40). Helped by stagnant wages and prices, Daiso outlets — selling everything from the useful to the silly, and sometimes for more than 100 yen — are now ubiquitous. "It's the value and the fun that customers can find in 100 yen.

Source: Philippine Star February 21, 2024 03:49 UTC