View source for Daiso

{{Short description|Japanese multinational variety store chain}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Daiso Industries Co., Ltd.
| logo = ダイソー.svg
| logo_size = 
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| image = Daiso 100Yen.jpg
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| image_caption = A Daiso store in Japan
| trading_name = 
| native_name = 株式会社大創産業
| native_name_lang = ja   
| romanized_name = Daiso Sangyo
| former_name = Yano Shoten
| type = [[Privately held company|Private]]
| traded_as = 
| ISIN = 
| industry = [[Variety store]]
| genre = <!-- Only used with media and publishing companies -->
| fate = 
| predecessor = <!-- or: | predecessors = -->
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| foundation = {{start date|1977|12}} in [[Takamatsu, Kagawa]], [[Japan]]
| founder = [[Hirotake Yano]] 
| defunct = <!-- {{end date|YYYY|MM|DD}} -->
| location_city = [[Higashihiroshima|Higashi Hiroshima-shi]], [[Hiroshima]], [[Japan]]
| location_country = 
| locations = 3,620 domestic; 1,900 overseas
| area_served = [[Asia]], [[Oceania]], [[North America]], [[Central America]], [[Brazil]], [[Africa]]
| key_people = Hirotake Yano ([[President (corporate title)|President]])
| products = 
| brands = 
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| aum = <!-- Only for financial-service companies -->
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| website = {{URL|daiso-sangyo.co.jp}} (Japan) 
{{URL|daisous.com}} (United States)
| footnotes = 
}}

{{Nihongo|'''Daiso Industries Co., Ltd.'''|株式会社大創産業|[[Kabushiki gaisha]] Daisōsangyō| branded in [[katakana]]  as ダイソー}} is a large franchise of [[100-yen shop]]s founded in [[Japan]]. Its headquarters are in [[Higashihiroshima, Hiroshima|Higashihiroshima]], [[Hiroshima Prefecture]].

Daiso has a range of over 100,000 products,  many [[made in China]] or [[Japan]], focusing on household items such as kitchenware and cleaning products. Daiso has locations in 25 countries and regions worldwide.

==History==
Daiso was originally opened as a [[100-yen shop|street vending shop]] with 100-[[Japanese yen|yen]] products, known as “Yano Shoten", by [[Hirotake Yano]] in 1972. He later founded Daiso in 1977.

==Business method==
Daiso often uses such locations as previous [[pachinko]] parlours for its retail outlets. The items at each shop are varied frequently to increase repeat customers.

Daiso categorizes all of its own branded items using the [[morpheme]] ''za'' ({{lang|ja|ザ}}), the Japanese representation of the English word "the", plus a category. For example, ''za hanabi'' ({{lang|ja|ザ・花火}}) is the category for fireworks, and ''za purasuchikku'' {{Nihongo||ザ・プラスチック}} is the category for plastic items such as plastic buckets and trays.

In 2004, Daiso started selling items priced at multiples of 100 yen, such as 200, 300, 400 and 500 yen.

== Locations ==
Daiso has 3,620 stores in Japan, and nearly 2,300 stores overseas in Australia, Bahrain, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Laos, Kuwait, Macau, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Myanmar, New Zealand, Oman, Philippines, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United States of America, and Vietnam.

Numbers of Daiso stores as of 2023:
{|
|-
|  style="width:15%; vertical-align:top; text-align:left;"|
'''Asia'''
*{{flagcountry|Japan}}: 3,620
*{{flagcountry|South Korea}}: 1,150
*{{flagcountry|Thailand}}: 138
*{{flagcountry|Philippines}}: 100
*{{flagcountry|Taiwan}}: 87
*{{flagcountry|China}}: 45
*{{flagcountry|Malaysia}}: 39
*{{flagcountry|Hong Kong}}: 34 (Retail name is Living Plaza by AEON, 3 DAISO)
*{{flagcountry|Singapore}}: 27
*{{flagcountry|Indonesia}}: 12
*{{flagcountry|Macau}}: 12
*{{flagcountry|Myanmar}}: 5
*{{flagcountry|Vietnam}}: 5*
*{{flagcountry|Mongolia}}: 4
*{{flagcountry|Cambodia}}: 3
*{{flagcountry|Laos}}: 2
*{{flagcountry|India}}: 2

'''Middle East'''
*{{flagcountry|United Arab Emirates}}: 48
*{{flagcountry|Saudi Arabia}}: 6
*{{flagcountry|Qatar}}: 5
*{{flagcountry|Kuwait}}: 4
*{{flagcountry|Bahrain}}: 2
*{{flagcountry|Oman}}: 1

|  style="width:15%; vertical-align:top; text-align:left;"|
'''Americas'''
*{{flagcountry|United States}}: 88
*{{flagcountry|Brazil}}: 50
*{{flagcountry|Mexico}}: 11
*{{flagcountry|Canada}}: 3

'''Oceania'''
*{{flagcountry|Australia}}: 41
*{{flagcountry|New Zealand}}: 4

'''Africa'''
*{{flagcountry|Mauritius}}: 2
|-
|}

===Australia===
The first Daiso store opened up in [[Abbotsford, Victoria]] in 2010, selling thousands of items at a flat rate of $2.80. Since then it has expanded to 13 stores in [[New South Wales]], 14 in [[Queensland]], three in [[South Australia]], 12 in Victoria and 2 in [[Perth]] (at [[Westfield Carousel]] and [[Lakeside Joondalup Shopping City|Lakeside Joondalup]]). The stores range from {{convert|209|m2|sqft|abbr=on}} to {{convert|1000 |m2|sqft|abbr=on}} (Midtown Plaza, Melbourne store), which is currently the largest in Australia. Almost every item is [[Australian dollar|AUD]] $3.30, or US${{To USD|3.10|AUS}}, except for a small range of products (5% of total range) that is sold at varying prices from $3 to $15.

===Bahrain===
Daiso's main store in Bahrain is located at Dasman Center, Manama, and spans two floors. It has been in operation since 2005.
Daiso also has a smaller outlet at Ramli Mall, A'ali. As of 2007, most products cost [[Bahraini dinar|BHD]] 0.600, or US${{To USD|0.6|BHR}}.

===Canada===
[[File:Daiso store.jpg|thumb|Daiso store on [[Granville Street]] in [[Vancouver|Vancouver, British Columbia]]]]

Daiso opened its first corporate Canadian store on [[Granville Street]] in downtown [[Vancouver|Vancouver, British Columbia]] in April 2021, with plans to expand nationally. With the opening of its Surrey location in March 2023, there are now four stores within Canada.

A franchise store, owned by [[Fairchild Group]], was operated in Richmond, British Columbia from 2003 to 2019, when it was rebranded under Fairchild's Oomomo banner. Oomomo has continued to sell some Daiso products, but this supply will be discontinued as Daiso expands.

===Cambodia===
There are three Daiso Japan locations in Cambodia. All products are priced at about US$1.90. As of 2018, its new name in Cambodia is ”DAISO JAPAN Life Coordinates Store”.

===Malaysia===
[[File:Daiso Japan EkoCheras Mall 20230531 154026.jpg|thumb|Daiso in Malaysia]]
All products are priced at [[Malaysian ringgit|RM]] 5.90, or US${{To USD|5.90|MYS}} [[Goods and Services Tax (Malaysia)|GST]]-inclusive. The price increase from RM 5.30 to the current price was effective from March 1, 2017. The price was temporarily reduced to RM 5.57 when GST was removed in Malaysia, but 8t returned to RM 5.90 when SST (Sales and Services Tax) became effective on September 1, 2018.

===Singapore===
There are 27 Daiso stores in Singapore, together with 11 Threeppy stores and one Standard Products store. Minimum pricing is $2.16, followed by 14 tiered increments. The first and largest flagship Daiso store is located at [[IMM (Singapore)|IMM]].

===South Korea===
Daiso Korea owns 1,150 stores across the country, established in 1992 as the Daiso-Asung Corporation. Working in cooperation with Daiso Japan from 2001–2011, the chain has proliferated over the last ten years using a low cost / high quality strategy. Each store stocks over 30,000 items; most are under 1,000 won, or {{To USD|1000|KOR}}. Daiso also has an online shopping mall that allows people to purchase the same items at home.

In 2011 and 2014, Daiso Korea announced that they were no longer part of Daiso Japan, claiming that Daiso Japan was trying to promote [[Liancourt Rocks]] as part of Japan. Daiso Korea confirmed that they were not selling the products Daiso Japan was selling and that they were acting as a different company.
[[File:Daiso Namdaemun-ro No.1 store.JPG|thumb|Daiso - South Korea]]
Daiso Korea has a unique logo compared to the rest of the Daiso Corporation. The modified logo is used inside the country to rebrand itself as a more modern company and to show its break-off from Daiso Japan. In December 2023, Daiso Korea announced that it had bought back its shares from Daiso Japan (34.21% stake reportedly worth around 500 billion won), effectively making it fully Korean-owned.

===United States===
[[File:20140913-0261 San Gabriel.JPG|right|thumb|250px|Daiso in [[San Gabriel, California]]]]

On October 2, 2005, the first Daiso store in the United States opened at [[Alderwood Mall]] in [[Lynnwood, Washington|Lynnwood]], near [[Seattle]], Washington. This store was much smaller at only 442 square meters (approx. 4,750 square feet), and items were originally priced at $1, $1.50, and $2 (all [[United States dollar|USD]]). The inventory was expanded to include packaged food and items priced up to $8, though most items remained at the $1.50 minimum until a 25-cent increase in 2022. The Alderwood store was moved to a new mall location in 2015 and off-site in 2017.

{{As of|2023}}, there are 90 stores in the continental United States, operated by Daiso US. The stores are in [[Arizona]], [[California]], [[Nevada]], [[New Jersey]], [[New York (state)|New York]], [[Texas]], and [[Washington (state)|Washington]]. The largest U.S. Daiso is ln [[Union City, California]], with {{convert|17760|sqft|m2}} of floor space; it opened on August 8, 2007.

There are four Daiso stores in Hawaii operated by Daiso Hawaii. On December 12, 2018, Daiso Japan opened its first store in [[Honolulu]], Hawaii, and opened two others on March 14, 2019 and January 20, 2022.

On March 8, 2019, Daiso Japan opened its first branch on the [[East Coast of the United States|U.S. East Coast]] in [[Flushing, Queens]], [[New York City|New York]].

On December 29, 2021, Daiso opened its first store in [[Las Vegas, Nevada]].

== Controversies==
In June 2017 Daiso was forced by the [[Australian Competition & Consumer Commission]] to recall 165 products in Australia. These included toys which could pose a choking hazard or injury and beauty products with unknown ingredients.

In June 2022, [[Crocs]] filed a lawsuit against Daiso, accusing them of selling foam clogs that allegedly resembled theirs and violating copyright trademarks.

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}

{{二次利用|date=7 April 2024}}
[[Category:Discount stores of Japan]]
[[Category:Retail companies of Japan]]
[[Category:Variety stores]]
[[Category:Japanese brands]]