l comfortably above 20 per cent on a year-over-year basis.  Revenue for the whole year 2023 was 2,529.1 billion Thai baht (US$72 million), up 34 per cent on 2022. The company’s stated goal was for revenue growth above 20 per cent, so it met that objective and more. It included a marked jump in the percentage of sales attributable to wholesale, from 14 per cent to 18 per cent. The wholesale part of the operation includes revenue from the acquisition last year of gift and stationery wholesaler OK Station in Sampeng, Bangkok, and the company’s store in Platinum Wholesale Mall in the capital’s downtown.   Gross margin percentage was a healthy 53.4 per cent, up from 52.4 per cent. Net profit was 401.51 billion baht (US$11.5 million), an increase of 59 per cent. The net profit margin rose sharply to 15.9 per cent. The company’s shares, which are listed on the Thai stock exchange, have been trading well above the pre-announcement level, although Moshi Moshi remains very much a small-cap name.   Revenue gains were supported by the opening of 21 new stores, to get to a fleet of 126 at year-end, and by March 9 the company footprint had expanded still further, reaching 134 stores. Gains were also supported by the recovery of tourism. The company enjoyed a key gain of 17 per cent in the same-store sales metric (+3.2 per cent in the fourth quarter): Moshi Moshi is making headway not just by tacking on new floorspace, but also by introducing new products and improving product through-put at its existing units. What is the secret sauce?  Moshi Moshi, a phrase that is used in Japan as an informal phone greeting, has been parlayed into a powerful retail concept that reminds the visitor of Daiso, Miniso, Muji and other concepts that please customers, with a combination of tidy store design, finely manicured everyday products that look good, and sharp pricing.  Products mostly target young women and girls and indeed the retailer is rolling out new K-Pop themed merchandise, which is hugely popular in Thailand. Nonetheless, there is enough variety in the lineup to attract some slightly older purchasers, too, although these older clientele are often in the store buying gifts for their children and grandchildren.   Merchandise is exclusive to Moshi Moshi in 12 categories: home accessories, bags, stationery, cosmetics, fashion accessories, beauty, apparel (primarily T-shirts), snacks, toys, plush toys, IT gadgets, and ‘Etc’. The front-facing display upon entry to the store has a rotating, season- and event-driven product offering: right now it’s a selection of merchandise under the heading “Summer Vibes”.  A high proportion of the merchandise is themed with licensed cartoon characters, such as Snoopy from Peanuts. Among those licensing deals were the 2020 acquisition of the licence from Disney for Mickey Mouse and friends, Winnie The Pooh and more. Moshi Moshi snapped up the licence for Snoopy the following year. Other deals followed, and acquiring these licences to use on merchandise is an ongoing focus for keeping the brand fresh. The strategy for the next few years: grow  The company wants to expand its footprint outside of Thailand by the end of next year and is already looking at potential opportunities elsewhere in Southeast Asia. It would seem to be an excellent fit for its neighbours, especially countries like Vietnam that, in concentrated areas, are at a similar level of development and can offer good real-estate platforms.   In the meantime, it generates domestic growth from new product development and by densifying its store fleet in Thailand, where it projects the potential for another 20 stores in both 2024 and 2025. Already, the store footprint extends more than 1,700 kilometres from Chiang Rai in the far north of the country to Songkhla in the extreme south, and as far east as the provincial capital of Ubon Ratchathani near the border with Laos.  It also wants to diversify its store formats, including stand-alone stores not located in shopping centres. Exploration of a franchise model for new stores located outside of shopping malls is already at an advanced stage and may launch this year. Increasing the number of stores and renovating existing ones continue to be at the top of the retailer’s planned capital expenditures for this year, with half of the 200 million baht of projected company capex to be devoted to those alone.  This all makes sense. One of the beauties of Moshi Moshi’s format is its great versatility since the average store is very compact and the merchandising is attractive despite being at a low price point. This makes it adaptable for in-centre and freestanding locations and also makes it highly resistant to economic cycles. In the past year, the Thai economy has struggled amid lower global demand for its manufactured exports, and rising interest rates and elevated household debt have weighed down consumer spending. A none-too-subtle argument between the Prime Minister and the brass at the country’s central bank, the Bank of Thailand, erupted last year, and spilled over into this year, over the interest rate situation. The PM suggested the economy was ‘in crisis’ and the bank really should loosen up. Whether or not ‘crisis’ is exactly the right word is debatable, but either way, the household finance situation has adversely affected spending on bigger-ticket items, but much less so at Moshi Moshi’s price point.  No matter which way the economy goes this year, for Moshi Moshi, it’s onward and upward.