On Oct. 21, the Fukuoka branch of Tokyo Shoko Research released its rankings of retail companies by sales in the Kyushu-Okinawa region for FY 2013. Fukuoka-based drug store chain Cosmos Pharmaceutical Corp. took the top spot with ¥329 billion in sales, beating out discount retailer Trial Company, which had held the top spot for the past two years.The survey covers 149 companies in the region with sales of ¥5 billion or more, and for the first time since the survey began in 1986, the total combined sales of the surveyed companies topped ¥3 trillion. In all, 94 companies, or 24 more than last year, recorded increased revenues due to the Abenomics-spurred economic recovery and last-minute purchases before the consumption tax hike. Source: Nishinippon Shimbun 10/22
