Don Quijote Owner Opens Discount Grocer as Japan Inflation Bites

Don Quijote parent Pan Pacific International Holdings Corp. is bringing its discount model to groceries, opening the first store in a new food-focused chain as inflation squeezes Japanese households.

The Robin Hood brand — whose name is a nod to the English folk hero who aided the poor — underscores the company’s focus on easing the burden of rising living costs. Its first outlet will open Friday in Aichi prefecture, about a three-hour drive from Tokyo, offering rice balls from ¥85 ($0.53) and packs of 41 sausages for ¥735, including tax.