With unseasonably warm weather at the end of last year dampening demand for winter clothing, Japanese apparel retailer TSI Holdings had weaker earnings for the year ended February 29.

Its operating profit was flat at about 1 billion yen (US$8.86 million), falling short of a 1.2 billion yen projection. Sales fell about 9 per cent to 165 billion yen against a predicted 167 billion yen.

Same-store sales, including online data, eased 3.6 per cent, with dips of 8 per cent for November and 4.1 per cent for December. High-margin items such as wool overcoats from mainstay brand Natural Beauty Basic met lukewarm demand.

During the quarter, the company opened 58 stores for 21 brands, and has been negotiating with domestic and overseas apparel and natural cosmetics companies, leading to partnerships with a Chinese apparel company and a domestic beauty industry company.

TSI also reports a “drastic shift” from paper media to digital promotion, and is enhancing its relationship with Google. This follows its eCommerce ratio growing from 9.6 to 10.8 per cent.

Almost all brands’ O2O sites are now on the table, says the group, which is developing smartphone apps. Four brands opened sites – Free’s Mart, Jill Stuart, Natural Beauty and Zio Bernardo. Free’s Mart also became the first Japanese brand launched on the Zalora eCommerce site in Southeast Asia.

The group’s own eCommerce sites grew 129 per cent year-on-year, from 11 to 20.

TSI has 14 apparel subsidiaries in Japan and three overseas, and its 63 brands include Adore, Callaway, High Street, Nano Universe and Stussy.