To Investors

NEW ART Institute established to boost the potential of individual businesses

Our group consists of NEW ART HOLDINGS, the holding company, and 12 operating companies (six in Japan and six outside Japan), and develops diverse business mainly in the fields of bridal jewelry, health and beauty, sports, art and fintech. In the year ended March 2022, we achieved a 19.8% increase in operating profit. In 2022, we established the NEW ART Institute with the aim of further developing these businesses by increasing the synergistic effects between them.

The NEW ART Institute is preparing in earnest to launch new enterprises, capitalizing on our solid achievements and years of experience built up in our existing businesses. Major plans are for the development of cosmetics and health supplements, the establishment and operation of the hotel wedding business in Karuizawa, product planning and development for a collaboration with Kengo Kuma (Japanese architect and designer) , and the operation of Asia’s largest-class auction house. We will advance these business expansion plans while promoting M&A strategies with an eye to increasing net sales to 100 billion yen over a five- to seven-year medium-term period.

Contribution to society is the key to continued growth of business

In doing business, I believe, it is important that the products and services we provide should benefit individual people or society as a whole. Good entrepreneurs do not only have good management skills, they are also are able to consider what they should do to properly contribute to their customers. Similarly, enterprises should be able to properly contribute to individual investors. Their investment funds are valuable assets derived from long and hard efforts. We have a responsibility to make the most effective use of these important assets. We must also fulfill our responsibilities as a TSE-listed company. For these reasons, we have raised the dividend payout amount from 75 yen to 100 yen for this period.

Yet, I would like to ask you to look beyond immediate profits and take a long view of the Company, observing how hard it is working to contribute to creating benefits for people and society as a whole. I believe that socially aware businesses will continue to grow over a long period.

One of my favorite proverbs says, “Better to be the head of a dog than the tail of a lion” (meaning it is better to be in a leadership position, even if the organization you’re leading is relatively small.) This idea has been guiding me as an entrepreneur since the founding of the Company, which was a milestone event in my 50-year career as an art dealer supporting many artists inside and outside of Japan. I entered this industry in my 20s with a potent dream of becoming the world’s top gallerist and, around 30 years ago, I set up a company to specialize in bridal diamond jewelry, at a time before bridal jewelry boutiques began to appear in numbers and form a sizable market. The business has since been holding a leading position in the industry. Going forward, we will enhance and demonstrate our unique, unparalleled strengths in order to continue to grow.