The Mothers listing, and an unusually fast promotion to the First Section (2013)

Capital markets as the backing for growth

The heart of this decision was that a regional used-car chain secured the backing of the capital markets early, in order to move to the next stage of going national. With the 2013 listing and the unusually quick promotion in 2014, Hirota Yasuharu assembled in short order both the capacity to raise growth capital and the credibility of a listed company. That a company not yet at ¥30 billion in sales could set a long-term target of 200 stores and ¥200 billion can be read as a consequence of having secured, in advance, a route through the capital markets.

Turning that raised capacity into growth, however, required a further decision: to commit the money heavily to stores and land. Capital from the markets speeds up growth when it is used, and becomes a financial burden when it is misdirected. How to make the backing gained through listing and promotion pay off in big-format stores and national expansion, and how far to do so while keeping the balance sheet sound — this move in capital policy handed that question on to the company's next stage.