Bare minimum

Are they having a sale? I wonder...

Missing: I think they need a few more signs. Only one girl seems to have noticed it.

80% Off ? not worth doing business for 20% (!)

Supporting the Chinese economy by the looks of it.

Business must be booming. Another triumph for the Abenomic miracle.

some14some: "80% Off ? not worth doing business for 20% (!)"

Agreed, but then they probably marked the prices up 80% before the 'discount'. That's what many companies here do before offering such massive mark-downs. Anyway, I notice it's a MAX of 80% off, which probably means also that anything anyone wants would be regular priced or up to 10%. The 80% would likely, if actually a discount, be stuff from ages ago that they couldn't even put in the 'lucky bags'.

Likely not worth buying anything.

@smith

Adding 80 per cent to a price and then decreasing that new price by 80 per cent is still a fair discount.

Do the maths.

¥100 is raised to ¥180.

80 per cent off ¥180 gives you a price of ¥36.

Bargain!

I'll take a dozen!

80% off eh? If I had bought the same item at the regular price I'd be pissed.

they probably marked the prices up 80% before the 'discount'. That's what many companies here do before offering such massive mark-downs.

In Japan. It is illegal and punished. They are quite strict about it, Futou hyouji.

Tina, Tina

Of course we believe you.

While we're on the subject of retailing scruples, why did the supermarkets all mysteriously go from uchizei (tax included) to sotozei (tax excluded) prices overnight after the tax rise?

Any theories?

Sense, The stores can choose uchizei or sotozei. It's legal. It has nothing to do with the above case (Nijyu kakaku hyouji, a kind of Futou hyouji)

My theory of why stores changed to sotozei is that they expected another hike soon, so they thought it'd be easier next time on with sotozei. What's mysterious about it?

Why blame the stores for presenting the taxes however they choose?

Blame the occupants of government, who consider the taxes their due, raised at their whim.

why did the supermarkets all mysteriously go from uchizei (tax included) to sotozei (tax excluded) prices overnight after the tax rise?

It's easier to calculate without either losing money or ripping the customer off. An item that cost ¥100 before April, with 5% tax, would cost ¥102.857 after April with 8% tax. For uchizei the shop would have to either round up to ¥103 yen and rip off the customer on every purchase, or round down to ¥102 and lose money on every purchase. By displaying the before-tax price on the ticket and adding the 8% at the till, they keep the discrepancy to a minimum as the pluses and minuses tend to even each other out. It also reminds the customer every time how much is being taken in tax, and probably helps raise opposition to any further hikes. It wasn't all the supermarkets; in the town where I live some do, some don't.