SOUGOU SHOUKEN CO.,LTD.

Business Details

Provides Commercial Printing (flyers, pamphlets, catalogs, posters, etc.), New Year's Card Printing, sign product manufacturing, and Web & Digital Content Production under an integrated in-house system. Also handles SP planning, BPO, internet connection services, and Free Paper & Regional Media publishing. Major customers are Japan Post Co., Ltd. (15.87% of sales) and My Print Co., Ltd. (11.84% of sales). Operates across four areas—Hokkaido, Tohoku, Tokyo, and Western Japan—and the group includes consolidated subsidiaries Print House Co., Ltd. (on-demand printing) and Ajikaori Senryaku Kenkyujo Co., Ltd. (food marketing support).

Recent Overview

Sales-promotion-related business saw increased revenue, but structural decline in New Year's card business and increased upfront costs led to an overall profit decline; full-year forecast revised downward

For the cumulative nine months of FY2026 (ending July 2026) (August 2025 to April 2026), net sales were ¥13,579 million (down 2.2% year on year) and operating profit was ¥670 million (down 31.4% year on year). The sales-promotion-related business achieved increased revenue as orders for flyers, ISP, and BPO associated with major clients' new store openings and sales campaigns remained solid, while the New Year's card-related business saw a decline in revenue as order volumes fell due to structural demand contraction. On the profit side, increased upfront costs—including investments in generative AI and security measures as well as personnel costs associated with securing talent and improving compensation—overlapped, resulting in a substantial profit decline. The full-year earnings forecast was revised downward from the figures announced on September 12, 2025, to net sales of ¥15,700 million (down 3.3% year on year) and operating profit of ¥210 million (down 40.2% year on year). In terms of financial position, the equity ratio improved to 45.0% (from 39.3% at the previous fiscal year-end), and retained earnings increased by ¥441 million.

Key Products

Growth Drivers

• Solid trend in orders for flyers, in-store promotional materials, ISP, and BPO in the sales-promotion-related business associated with major clients' new store openings and sales campaigns
• Expansion of business domains through the acquisition of new projects such as Web-related work and PR magazine production for municipalities
• Acquisition of orders from new clients (including major retail and distribution companies) in Commercial Printing and increased orders for in-store promotional materials
• Acceleration of new product and service rollout utilizing generative AI and digital technologies, and operational efficiency improvements
• Revenue supplementation in the New Year's card-related business through the incorporation of new operations such as outsourced website-based ordering services

Risks

• Risk of continued revenue decline in the New Year's card-related business due to structural contraction in demand for New Year's cards (postal rate increases, progress of digitalization)
• Earnings pressure from declining demand for print media and rising raw material and energy prices
• Cost increases due to investments in generative AI and security measures and rising personnel expenses associated with securing talent and improving compensation (SG&A expenses expanded to ¥3,784 million, up ¥290 million year on year for the same quarter)
• Risk of sales concentration in Japan Post Co., Ltd. (15.87% of sales) and My Print Co., Ltd. (11.84% of sales)
• Risk of impairment of fixed assets (possibility of recording impairment losses due to changes in the assumptions underlying business plans and the management environment)
• Full-year operating profit forecast of ¥210 million (down 40.2% year on year) represents a substantial profit decline outlook, with limited scope for profit recovery in Q4 alone