Japan's 3 Gyudon Giants In for a Price-Cut War

Cook beef slices with soy sauce and a pinch of sugar, spread them over a generous bowl of rice, and you get "Gyudon". It's a popular dish for eco-tourists visiting Japan lately. It's cheap, tasty and nutritious.

For a while there in early spring, the Big 3 Gyudon Houses, Sukiya, Yoshinoya and Matsuya suspended underselling competition to balance up with a rise in the consumption tax, but now they are back again in another round of the war of attrition.

Only for a limited term, they say, but their Gyudon prices are cut low. When the prices were set high, the average from each customer rose but the number of customers dipped. Of all other options the Big 3 picked an underselling competition for a wonder drug for recovery. If this should work, they would be tempted to hang on to the drug. "If one of them should give a green light, the rest would follow suit", points out an expert on food-service chains, according to the Livedoor News.

Of course, Gyudon fans welcome the turn of events. But data show that  beef consumption in the developing countries is on the rise and there is no guarantee for the current low level of beef price to last forever. It is likely therefore that any price cut campaign would be only for limited periods.

According to the Livedoor News, another analyst points out the leading Gyudon houses have their own reasons for underselling each other. Autumn appetite around the corner, Sukiya and Yoshinoya are about to introduce hot-pot dishes. The idea is, says the analyst, to boost the number of customers in time for the hot-pot season.

"Hot-pot dishes are higher in price and earn more profits. A rich variety of other dishes side by side with hot-pot dishes on the menu should draw more customers.

"The underselling competition this time is a cool bit of chum after all", he points out.