Name

WORLD

Legal name

株式会社ワールド (WORLD Co., Ltd.)

Website

https://corp.world.co.jp

Company type

Public

Founded year

1959

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Apparel and Fashion Retail

NAICS

Clothing and Clothing Accessories Retailers (45811), Clothing and Clothing Accessories Retailers (458110), Apparel Accessories and Other Apparel Manufacturing (31599), Apparel Accessories and Other Apparel Manufacturing (3159), Jewelry Retailers (458310), Clothing, Clothing Accessories, Shoe, and Jewelry Retailers (458)

SIC

Retail-Apparel & Accessory Stores (5600), Leather & Leather Products (3100), Retail-Shoe Stores (5661), Retail-Variety Stores (5331), Wholesale-Apparel, Piece Goods & Notions (5130)

akta.pro primary industry

Luxury & Designer Apparel Houses (CRAAAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Luxury & Designer Apparel Retail (CRAAABAI), Luxury Leather Goods & Handbags (CRAKAFAB), Luxury & Designer Leather Goods Manufacturing (IMAOAHAG), Wallets, Small Leather Goods & Accessories Manufacturing (IMAOAHAB), Luxury Accessories & Leather Goods Department Stores (CRAGADAE), Luxury Home & Lifestyle (Tableware, Decor, Home Textiles) (CRAKAFAI)

Keywords

• Fashion retail brands
• Apparel manufacturing
• Circular fashion resale
• Leather goods retail
• Lifestyle goods retail

Headquarters

HQ city

Kobe

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. B2C Brand Retail: Sale of apparel, accessories, lifestyle goods, and jewellery through owned and franchised retail stores and e-commerce platforms across multiple proprietary brands targeting women, men, kids, and lifestyle categories.
2. B2C Wholesale / Franchise: Brand portfolio sold through department stores, shopping centers, and other retail intermediaries via franchise and wholesale arrangements.
3. B2C Digital / E-commerce: Operation of proprietary e-commerce sites for individual brands and group-wide digital marketing services, including solutions for external clients.
4. Platform / B2B Services: Provision of production, store space design, logistics, quality control, trade, and other operational services to internal and external fashion businesses.
5. Circular Economy (Reuse/Recycle): Secondhand fashion retail through Ragtag and usebowl branded stores, plus bag rental subscription service (Laxus), contributing to the company's circular fashion ecosystem.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

WORLD Co., Ltd. operates a multi-brand fashion and lifestyle business under a Specialty Retailer of Private Label Apparel (SPA) model. The company designs, manufactures, and retails apparel, leather goods, accessories, jewelry, and lifestyle products through 67 owned brands across department stores, shopping centers, fashion buildings, e-commerce, franchise, and international stores, and complements this with B2B platform services, secondhand fashion retail, and a luxury bag rental subscription service.

Product overview

WORLD Co., Ltd. is a Japanese fashion and lifestyle conglomerate operating under a dual-segment structure: B2C and B2B. The B2C segment encompasses 67 fashion brands across multiple categories including apparel (UNTITLED, INDIVI, TAKEO KIKUCHI, DRESSTERIOR, OPAQUE.CLIP), accessories/leather goods (HIROFU, HIROKO HAYASHI, TOFF & LOADSTONE, COCOSHNIK), lifestyle (212 KITCHEN STORE, one'sterrace, ITS'DEMO), circular economy (RAGTAG, usebowl, AND-BRIDGE), and international operations in Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, and Hong Kong. The B2B segment provides supply chain services, human resources operations, technology solutions, and platform services. The company also operates digital businesses including e-commerce platforms and the World Fashion Cloud creator platform. With 2,474 stores and operations spanning 60+ years since founding in 1959, WORLD functions as a comprehensive fashion service group offering everything from brand development and retail to production, space design, and sustainability initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• UNTITLED: Women's fashion brand offering quality daily wear with elegance and comfort.
• INDIVI
• COUP DE CHANCE (クード シャンス)
• REFLECT
• Dessin
• Sunauna
• TAKEO KIKUCHI
• tk.TAKEO KIKUCHI
• DRESSTERIOR
• ADABAT
• SHOO-LA-RUE
• OPAQUE.CLIP
• THE SHOP TK
• grove
• ORBENE
• index
• Couture Brooch
• RAGTAG
• R.T. (アールティー)
• usebowl
• HIROFU
• HIROKO HAYASHI
• TOFF & LOADSTONE
• COCOSHNIK
• 212 KITCHEN STORE
• ONE'S TERRACE
• ITS'DEMO
• ESPERANZA
• RISAMARI
• AUBRIOT
• cloenc
• GALLEST
• CODE A
• STRASBURGO
• CYCLas
• World Fashion Cloud
• World Premium Club
• WORLD Ecoromo Campaign

Products and services

• Brand Business (B2C Apparel Brands Portfolio) Portfolio of 67 proprietary fashion brands covering women's, men's, kids', accessories, leather goods, and lifestyle categories distributed through department stores, shopping centers, fashion buildings, station buildings, e-commerce, franchise, and select international stores.
• Platform Business (B2B Services) B2B services covering supply chain management, store and interior space design, production planning, quality control, human resources operations, and technology solutions delivered to fashion industry clients and other corporate partners.
• Digital Business E-commerce mall operations, third-party EC platform management, fashion customization, sharing services, and digital marketing services for both internal brands and external corporate clients.
• RAGTAG Designer-brand secondhand select shop chain offering curated pre-owned luxury and contemporary fashion, operating physical stores and an e-commerce platform.
• AND-BRIDGE Off-price retail store and e-commerce concept that resells discounted brand-name fashion, supporting circular economy.
• LAXUS Subscription-based rental service for luxury brand bags operated by an affiliated company, supporting the group's sharing and reuse economy strategy.
• World Ecoromo Campaign Clothing recovery and recycling campaign that collects unwanted garments from customers and channels them into reuse and recycling, supporting circular fashion.
• World Premium Club Group-wide unified customer loyalty point service usable across WORLD Group's directly operated physical stores and online shops.
• World Group E-Commerce Mall Integrated e-commerce platform at store.world.co.jp aggregating all WORLD Group brands under one digital storefront.
• World Fashion Cloud Creator-supporting platform that helps aspiring fashion designers and emerging brands launch by providing manufacturing and production infrastructure.
• 212 KITCHEN STORE Specialty kitchen tools and lifestyle store offering globally-sourced premium kitchen and dining goods under the concept of the home dining table as the world's most wonderful restaurant.
• GEOX Japan Sales Sale of GEOX Italian footwear and apparel in Japan through Life Gear Corporation, featuring patented Respira sole technology for breathability and waterproofing.
• ALL NEW MART New apparel brand targeting trend-weary consumers seeking authenticity, developed through collaboration with PR professional Mika Ohtsuki.
• UNTITLED Women's fashion brand offering premium casual and elegant daily wear for women, sold through department stores and select specialty channels.
• TAKEO KIKUCHI Men's fashion brand founded in 1984 by Takeo Kikuchi, known for Japanese design quality and a mix of traditional and street sensibility.
• HIROFU Premium leather goods brand founded in 1978 offering high-quality bags and accessories under the Simple, Minimal, Contemporary concept.

Quantifiable outcome

• 284 billion yen annual revenue (trailing 12 months)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Rakuten Payment (楽天ペイメント)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 10 February 2026WORLD Group and Rakuten Payment partnered to enable the Rakuten Point Card at 185 WORLD Group stores across OPAQUE.CLIP, index, Dessin, and ITS'DEMO brands. Customers can earn and use Rakuten Points at checkout, and dual membership with WORLD Premium Club is supported. The partnership includes a joint promotional campaign with 1 million Rakuten Points as prize.
• Kagoshima Prefecture Makurazaki City (鹿児島県枕崎市)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025WORLD Platform Service provided branding and event management services for Makurazaki City's Premium Market event at World Aoyama Building. Services included branding, art direction, and event planning — the first platform service engagement between WORLD Group and a municipal government.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Baroque Japan Limited: Operates MOUSSY, SLY, RODEO CROWNS, and other denim-led womenswear brands — comparable to WORLD's brand-house model with similar department store and shopping-center channels, though with a narrower apparel focus.
• Pal Group Holdings Co., Ltd. Multi-brand apparel holding company operating 3COINS + plus, Palette, honey mint, and other fashion/lifestyle brands across shopping centers — directly comparable in multi-brand portfolio breadth, shopping-center distribution, and lifestyle category extension.
• Adastria Co., Ltd. Operates multi-brand apparel chains in Japan including LOWRYS FARM, GLOBAL WORK, niko and..., and JEANASIS, plus the .ST water server business — directly comparable to WORLD's multi-brand womenswear/menswear/lifestyle portfolio and shopping-center distribution model.
• United Arrows Ltd. Operates multiple select shop and specialty store formats (United Arrows, BEAMS-style concept stores, beauty & wellness) across Japan. Directly comparable in multi-channel specialty retail and curated fashion positioning, though with a more selective brand offering than WORLD.
• Fast Retailing Co., Ltd. Parent of Uniqlo, GU, and Theory — the largest SPA (Specialty Retailer of Private Label Apparel) operator in Japan with a global multi-brand structure. Highly comparable to WORLD in operating model (SPA, multi-format, multi-brand), though at materially larger scale and with international revenue mix.
• TSI Holdings Co., Ltd. Japanese apparel holding company managing brands such as NANO universe, JILL STUART, and MARGARET HOWELL. Highly comparable multi-brand apparel holding structure with B2C and B2B operations serving similar Japanese department store and shopping-center channels.
• Onward Holdings Co., Ltd. Operates multiple Japanese apparel brands including ANY SIS, Jiyugaoka, and Burberry Japan licensing — directly comparable to WORLD as a multi-brand apparel manufacturer/retailer with department store exposure and a portfolio of branded subsidiaries.

Broad incumbents

• Inditex (Industria de Diseño Textil S.A.): Parent of Zara, Bershka, Massimo Dutti, and Pull&Bear — the global benchmark SPA model. WORLD shares the same vertically integrated SPA DNA and multi-brand positioning at smaller scale and with a Japan-centric footprint.
• H&M Hennes & Mauritz AB: Global fast-fashion and multi-brand SPA operator — comparable to WORLD on multi-brand positioning, direct-to-consumer retail model, and broad fashion and accessories assortment, though at materially larger scale and with different geographic mix.

Regional players

• Sanyo Shokai Ltd. Established Japanese apparel manufacturer-retailer operating brands like BURBERRY BLACK LABEL (historically) and other heritage outerwear brands — comparable to WORLD's premium apparel manufacturing operations and department-store channel exposure in the Japanese market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/world.co.ltd
• Instagraminstagram.com/world_group_recruit/?hl=ja

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries43 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about WORLD