DAIREI CO.,LTD.

Business Details

A fabless wholesale business that plans and sells commercial-use frozen foods to domestic end users such as medical food, nursing care food, boxed lunch catering, and restaurants. Manufacturing is outsourced to partner factories in Japan and overseas (Japan, China, Vietnam, Thailand), and the company markets its own brand products and PB (private brand) products nationwide. The business consists of three divisions: the Boneless Fish Business, the Meat Business, and Other Business (Prepared Frozen Foods, Seafood Products, etc.). The company has built a delivery system capable of next-day delivery from as little as one case, ensuring customer convenience.

Recent Overview

Sales and operating income declined for the second consecutive year, but the company returned to profitability after a net loss in the prior period

In FY2026 (ending March 2026), sales were ¥25,053 million (down 2.6% year on year) and operating income was ¥660 million (down 21.5% year on year), marking a second consecutive year of lower sales and lower profit. The main cause was a decline in gross margin due to increased discounting in response to consumers' price-conscious preferences. On the other hand, the ¥1,130 million business restructuring loss recorded in the prior period did not recur, and net income turned positive at ¥482 million, up from a net loss of ¥574 million in the prior period. The Boneless Fish Business and Other Business saw sales recover in the second half but could not offset the decline in the first half, while only the Meat Business achieved a slight increase in sales. For the next fiscal year (FY2027, ending March 2027), the company forecasts sales of ¥25,200 million (up 0.6% year on year) and operating income of ¥780 million (up 18.1% year on year), aiming to rebuild the Boneless Fish Business based on expanded sales of the new "MOTTO" series.

Key Products

Growth Drivers

• Rebuilding the Boneless Fish Business through expanded sales of the new "MOTTO" series (next fiscal year sales forecast of ¥8,834 million, up 1.4% year on year)
• Increased sales in the Meat Business through expanded sales of Thailand-produced "chicken" Rakuraku Takumi-aji products (next fiscal year sales forecast of ¥2,473 million, up 1.3% year on year)
• Maintaining and expanding Other Business through expanded sales of oyster and shrimp products and introduction of new low-priced products
• Expected improvement in gross margin due to the resolution of the prior period's negative impact from Vietnamese shrimp
• Recovery in demand for restaurant/dining-out products (continued recovery in sales of American dog-type products, etc.)

Risks

• Continued consumer price-consciousness driving a shift toward low-priced products and pressure on gross margin (gross margin worsened in the current period due to increased discounting)
• Rising procurement costs due to soaring raw material prices, energy prices, and logistics costs (exchange rate assumption of ¥160 to the US dollar)
• Geopolitical and procurement risks from dependence on overseas partner factories for approximately 60% of products (deteriorating Japan-China relations, Middle East situation, etc.)
• Risk of falling short of earnings forecasts if sales of the new "MOTTO" series do not proceed as planned
• Risk of further increases in logistics and raw material costs against a backdrop of soaring crude oil prices
• Risk of shrinking domestic food industry demand and intensifying competition due to concentration in a single business