<figure id="attachment_390115" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 2016px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-390115"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="7eed5acf"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/059c7631efd8b8bb99e3875d47cc841e.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-390115" class="wp-caption-text">A Black Yoshinoya store aimed at women.</figcaption></figure>
The first impression was a roast beef rice bowl topped with an egg yolk. The meat had less of a distinctive taste than expected, with a light flavor due to its low-fat red meat. However, its thickness provided a satisfying bite. Despite the somewhat high price of 1,683 yen (including tax), the dish was satisfying and paired well with the egg.
What the reporter had was Yoshinoya&#8217;s limited-edition &#8216;Ostrich Rice Bowl&#8217; released in August. It is being offered in about 400 stores nationwide with a limit of 60,000 servings. Ostrich meat is high in protein and low in calories, and is believed to have beauty and health benefits.
Economic journalist Takashi Matsuzaki speculates on Yoshinoya&#8217;s intention behind the release of the &#8216;Ostrich Rice Bowl&#8217;:
&#8220;The goal is likely to attract female customers. Yoshinoya is not only serving ostrich meat as a dish but is also using high-beauty-fat components and selling beauty products through affiliated companies (&#8216;Glamorous Booster Oil&#8217; at 15,400 yen, &#8216;Glamorous Aging Cream&#8217; at 16,500 yen, etc.). It is said to have high skin moisturizing effects.&#8221;
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<h2>Yoshinoya&#8217;s Focus on the &#8216;Black Yoshinoya&#8217;</h2>
Yoshinoya&#8217;s new strategy targeting women is not a recent development. Matsuzaki continues:
“They have enlisted model and talent Nico Fujita, who enjoys overwhelming support from young women, for their advertisements. They are also increasing the number of female employees. A key part of their focus is the &#8216;Black Yoshinoya,&#8217; which features a striking black sign. The store offers a wide range of menu items, including a drink bar and cakes, and has a calm, café-like atmosphere that is welcoming for women to visit alone.
Yoshinoya seems to be aiming to shift away from the image of &#8216;fast food for male office workers.&#8217; Until now, Yoshinoya has opened many stores near business districts, leveraging the advantages of being &#8216;cheap and quick&#8217; to provide beef bowls to working men. However, Yoshinoya Holdings&#8217; net profit for March to May this year was approximately 33% lower than the same period last year. It seems they have determined that attracting female customers is crucial to offsetting the losses.&#8221;
It’s not just the image of being a &#8216;male-centric store&#8217; that has driven women away; the incident in April 2022 involving remarks by a former executive likely exacerbated the issue. During a lecture aimed at working adults, the male executive made comments about Yoshinoya’s marketing strategies.
&#8220;A scheme where a young girl from the countryside, who knows nothing, uses it for the first time and becomes marinated in shabu.&#8221;
The &#8220;shabu-marinated remarks&#8221; quickly became a major scandal. It’s understandable that Yoshinoya is desperately trying to regain trust from female customers. Will the company be able to overcome the fallout from the &#8220;executive remarks&#8221; and the image of being a &#8220;male-centric store&#8221;? Matsuzaki comments:
“I think it&#8217;s currently difficult. Rivals like Sukiya and Matsuya have long been expanding suburban stores, enriching their children&#8217;s menus and sweets, and successfully attracting families and female customers. Yoshinoya’s new strategy undeniably feels like a late follow-up. For real change, they need to implement radical reforms, such as having more than half of their executives be women. They must adopt innovative ideas from a female perspective; otherwise, they won&#8217;t be able to break the current situation.”
Will the &#8216;Ostrich Rice Bowl&#8217; and beauty products resonate with female customers? Yoshinoya’s challenge seems to be just beginning.
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<figure id="attachment_390348" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 2176px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-390348"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="aa9fc4b8"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/807afb1558fa05a406c2f14e044384b3.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-390348" class="wp-caption-text">Limited Edition &#8216;Ostrich Rice Bowl&#8217; (from Yoshinoya&#8217;s website)</figcaption></figure>
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<figure id="attachment_390116" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 2016px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-390116"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="82fcf8be"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/afbc2a39628ce8cd9d026abd8b1669be.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-390116" class="wp-caption-text">Typical Yoshinoya is associated with an orange image.</figcaption></figure>
<figure id="attachment_390117" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 2016px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-390117"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="8f9e3fad"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/38366b715a53d1336f4799835f206146.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-390117" class="wp-caption-text">Recently, the focus has shifted to the &#8220;Black Yoshinoya,&#8221; which features an updated menu.</figcaption></figure>
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<figure id="attachment_390118" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 2016px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-390118"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="28ea86ed"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/fd233a431dcc96c2d004a89a35f72f8c.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-390118" class="wp-caption-text">Yoshinoya has received overwhelming support from working men.</figcaption></figure>
<figure id="attachment_390119" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 1312px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-390119"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="f2991db8"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/539cbfacb1ba34964d7e9eaa9a019234.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-390119" class="wp-caption-text">Will strategies like &#8220;Black Yoshinoya&#8221; resonate with women?</figcaption></figure>
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 Yoshinoya is now selling beauty products in addition to its ostrich bowl. The beef bowl chain Yoshinoya is launching a series of new strategies aimed at women. Behind this is the "Shabu-zuke comment" made by a board member. Will Yoshinoya be able to break free from the setback caused by the fire? An expert gives a thorough explanation.

Yoshinoya&#8217;s Efforts to Attract Female Customers with Health-Conscious Ostrich Rice Bowl and Beauty Products Amid Fallout from Shabu-Marinated Remarks

Yoshinoya’s Efforts to Attract Female Customers with Health-Conscious Ostrich Rice Bowl and Beauty Products Amid Fallout from Shabu-Marinated Remarks

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