Supermarket competition intensifies in Chugoku with Lopia’s advances

The supermarket sector in the Chugoku region is being reshaped with the entry of discount supermarket chain Lopia in Hiroshima and Yamaguchi prefectures this year. Local supermarket operators are responding by strengthening their fresh-food offerings while seeking greater efficiency, including the introduction of new store formats designed to keep costs down. Since opening in April, crowds are still a common sight at Lopia’s store in the Hiroshima Pacela shopping complex in Hiroshima’s Naka Ward, which is the Kawasaki-based chain’s first outlet in the Chugoku-Shikoku region.