[Miyagi] Sakurano Sendai store closed! ? Trace its rise and fall

February 26, 2017

This marks the end of the history of a company that has continued to watch over the development of Sendai since the postwar period. We would like to look back on the rise and fall of Sakurano Sendai Store, which has continued to run alongside Sendai Station for 70 years since its founding

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Maruko era

1946. In front of Sendai Station

Marumitsu Department Store opened in a prime location that had been burned down during the Sendai air raids. Marumitsu, which would later become Sakurano Department Store, started out as a general goods store

It began operations as a department store in 1953. Approximately 12 years later, its sales floor area exceeded that of rival Fujisaki Department Store and Mitsukoshi, a major department store in Tokyo, making it the department store with the largest sales floor area in Sendai

This was also the year that Tohoku's first musical siren was introduced. A music box version of "Kojo no Tsuki" (The Moon Over the Ruined Castle) was played four times in front of Sendai Station: at 10:00 AM, noon, 3:00 PM, and 5:00 PM. At 9:00 PM, employees would operate the keyboard to play "Kono Michi" (This Road) and "Kaerijyo" (Homeward Journey), which became something of a Sendai specialty

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Duck City Maruko, Sendai VIVRE era

In 1978, Marumitsu, together with three other companies including Kanecho Takeda Department Store, formed a department store alliance with the support of Nichii (now Mycal), and in 1985 changed its name to Duck City Co., Ltd. and its stores to Duck City Marumitsu. It also formed a business partnership with VIVRE, a fashion building operated by Nichii, and in 1991, Sendai Vivre was born

Following the company name, the word Marumitsu will also disappear from the store name, bringing to an end the 45-year history of Marumitsu, which began in 1946

However, Sendai VIVRE's business was not going smoothly

In 1998, the name was changed from Duck City to Duck Vivre. Three years later, the parent company, Mycal, finally went bankrupt.
As a result, Duck Vivre filed for civil rehabilitation. This led to the birth of Sakurano Department Store.

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Sakurano Department Store era

Even after being reborn as Sakurano Department Store, management continued to face extreme difficulties

However, in 2004, the Sakurano Gourmet Hall, which strengthened the underground food section, was renovated in 2005 to introduce a large number of new brands, and the mall has been introducing one initiative after another that has us excited

Even after a business split in 2005 and a change of company name to Emarche in 2010, the store continues to operate under the name "Sakurano Department Store Sendai Branch."

In the same year, 2010, the seventh and eighth floors were rented out to Book Off, and in November 2012, H&M opened its first store in Tohoku with a sales floor area of ​​2,000 m2. It was hoped that the opening of H&M would change the image of Sakurano Department Store, which has always been frequented by older customers

In 2016, a grand thanksgiving event was held to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the store, during which they brought back the musical siren "Kono Michi" for the first time in about 30 years, creating a stylish performance reminiscent of the old days

However, the following year, on February 26, 2017..

Emarche filed for bankruptcy proceedings with the Sendai District Court, bringing an end to its 70-year history

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Sakurano Sendai store today (March 2017)

As of March 2017, Sakurano Sendai store has a large tenant operating there, so you can walk around part of the store

It was hard to recall the glorious days from inside the empty store, but there was a department store here that undoubtedly made Sendai's history

Now, I would like to express my gratitude to Sakurano Sendai store for running through such turbulent times

All Sakurano stores except the Sendai store are still open. Please rest assured that the permanent points on your Sakurano Point Card and Sakurano Saison Card can be used at participating stores

Information

• Name: Sakurano Department Store Sendai Branch (closed)
• Address: 1-9-33 Chuo, Aoba-ku, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture

Google Map

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