Company History
| May 1998 | “Start Today Ltd.” was established. Business started out by selling imported CDs and records, based on mail orders from a catalog. |
| Jan. 2000 | An online shopping website “STM online” was launched for the sales of imported CDs and records. (The company ended the sales of imported CDs and records in Sep. 2006) |
| Apr. 2000 | Became a stock company, and changed the company name to “Start Today Co., Ltd.” |
| Oct. 2000 | Launched a fashion e-commerce site “Eproze” as one of the first EC apparel business of Start Today. |
| Jan. 2001 | Relocated the head office to Mihama-ku, Chiba-shi, Chiba from Edogawa-ku, Tokyo. |
| Dec. 2004 | Launched a fashion e-commerce site “ZOZOTOWN”(Introducing items from 17 apparel select stores). |
| Aug. 2006 | Established a logistics center, “ZOZOBASE” (Narashino City, Chiba). |
| Dec. 2007 | The company is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers. |
| May 2008 | Established a subsidiary company, “Start Today Consulting Co., Ltd.” for the brand e-commerce consulting business. (Merged into Start Today Co., Ltd. in Aug. 2013) |
| Nov. 2010 | Launched the “ZOZOTOWN” app for iPhone. |
| Mar. 2011 | Sold charity T-shirts on ZOZOTOWN for the support of the Great East Japan Earthquake, and donated 353,976,000 yen to the earthquake reconstruction supporting groups. |
| May 2011 | Launched a global online fashion shopping website “ZOZOTOWN.COM”. (Service closed in Jul. 2014) |
| Jun. 2011 | Established a joint venture, “ZOZOTOWN HONGKONG Co., LIMITED.” with SoftBank Corp. (Liquidated in Aug. 2017) |
| Aug. 2011 | Acquired 100% ownership of “Crown Jewel, Inc.” (Merged into ZOZO, Inc. in Nov 2019) Established a subsidiary company of “ZOZOTOWN HONGKONG Co.,LIMITED.” (Liquidated in Jul. 2015) |
| Oct. 2011 | Launched an online fashion shopping website “ZOZOTOWN CHINA” and “ZOZOTOWN within Taobao.com” in China. (Service closed in Jan 2013) |
| Nov. 2011 | Launched “ZOZOTOWN” within eBay G market and eBay Auction in Korea. (Service closed in Jun 2013) |
| Feb. 2012 | The company is listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. |
| May 2012 | Introduced a six-hour working program, “Rokujiro” .（Program ended as of the introduction of flexible working hours in Oct. 2019) |
| Sep. 2012 | Held the first physical event “ZOZOCOLLE” a fashion exhibition opened for the public. |
| Nov. 2012 | Launched “ZOZOUSED”, an online shopping website for secondhand/vintage apparel. |
| Aug. 2013 | Acquired 100% ownership of “Bracket, Inc.” (Independent from ZOZO group by MBO Oct. 2016) |
| Oct. 2013 | Launched the outfit / styling idea app, “WEAR”. |
| Mar. 2014 | Launched same-day shipping services (Same-day delivery also provided in limited areas). |
| Oct. 2014 | Acquired 100% ownership of “YAPPA Corp.” |
| Apr. 2015 | Launched “WEAR” service globally. |
| May 2015 | Acquired 100% ownership of “Aratana Inc.” (Merged into ZOZO, Inc. in Apr. 2020) |
| Nov. 2015 | Earned the naming rights to a sports facility in Makuhari, operated by the management office of the professional soccer player, HONDA Keisuke and named “ZOZOPARK HONDA FOOTBALL AREA”. |
| Dec. 2015 | Established “Start Today Engineering CO., LTD.” (current ZOZO NEXT, Inc.) Launched a fashion flea market app, “ZOZOFURIMA”. (Service closed in Jun. 2017) |
| Nov. 2016 | Earned the naming rights to the “Chiba Marine Stadium”, and renamed the stadium to “ZOZO MARINE STADIUM”. |
| Jun. 2017 | ZOZOTOWN’s customer support center received the very first “HDI Five-star recognition” in the apparel industry. |
| Mar. 2017 | Established “STV FUND, LP”. Established “START TODAY USA Inc. (current “ZOZO Apparel USA Inc.”) |
| Oct. 2017 | Acquired 100% ownership of “VASILY, Inc.” (Merged into START TODAY Engineering CO., Ltd in Apr. 2018) |
| Nov. 2017 | Introduced “ZOZOSUIT” a 3D body measurement suit. (Distribution ended in Oct. 2019 / Service closed in Jun. 2022) |
| Jan. 2018 | Launched a first-ever private brand “ZOZO”. Acquired 100% ownership of “Colorcle, Inc.” (Merged into Start Today Engineering Co.,Ltd in Apr. 2018) Launched a new project research team “Start Today Research” (current ZOZO Research). |
| Feb. 2018 | Launched “Personal Styling Subscription Service”. (Service closed in Jun. 2019) |
| Apr. 2018 | Established “Start Today Technologies Inc.” (current ZOZO NEXT, Inc.) through the merger of Start Today Engineering Co., Ltd., VASILY Inc. and Colorcle Inc. |
| May 2018 | Signed agreements of official sponsorship and brand partnership with a professional soccer team JEF United Ichihara Chiba. |
| Jul. 2018 | Held a press conference “ZOZO BRAND VISION CONFERENCE” regarding the future vision of private brand and new services. |
| Aug. 2018 | Acquired 100% ownership of “Bespokify Pte., Ltd.” |
| Oct. 2018 | On the occasion of its 20th anniversary, renamed Start Today Co.,Ltd to “ZOZO, Inc.”, Start Today Technologies Inc to “ZOZO Technologies Inc” and Crown Jewel Inc to “ZOZO USED Inc.” (Merged ZOZOUSED Inc. into ZOZO, Inc. in Nov. 2019) Launched a logistics center “ZOZOBASE Tsukuba 1” (Tsukuba-shi, Ibaraki). |
| Nov. 2018 | Signed a sponsorship agreement with “PGA TOUR”. |
| Feb. 2019 | Announced an upcoming construction of a new headquarter in Nichi-Chiba area in Chiba. Signed a comprehensive partnership agreement with Chiba City and Chiba University in an effort to the development of and generate new values from the local community. |
| Mar. 2019 | Established “ZOZO NEW ZEALAND LIMITED”. |
| Apr. 2019 | Established “Shanghai ZOZO Co., Ltd.” |
| May. 2019 | Launched a fulfillment support service “Fulfillment by ZOZO”. |
| Jun. 2019 | Introduced “ZOZOMAT” a 3D free printed mat that scans feet in 3D through smartphones. (Distribution started upon order in Feb. 2020) |
| Aug. 2019 | Launched the MSP (Multi-Size Platforms) business that allows customers to find perfect sizes only with data of their height and weight. |
| Sep. 2019 | Announced the Capital and Business Alliance with Yahoo Japan Corporation (current LY Corporation). (the company consolidated into Yahoo Japan Corporation in Nov. 2019) Company founder Yusaku Maezawa resigned from his position, and the position was succeeded by Director SAWADA Kotaro, who was appointed as Representative Director, President & CEO. |
| Oct. 2019 | Held the first Japan tournament of PGA TOUR “ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP”. Launched a logistics center “ZOZOBASE Tsukuba 2” (Tsukuba City, Ibaraki). |
| Dec. 2019 | Started the operation of “ZOZO” a ZOZOTOWN platform available in China. (Service closed in Apr. 2022) Opened a ZOZOTOWN account within an online shopping mall “PayPay Mall”. |
| Mar. 2020 | Launched “ZOZOSHOES” a platform dedicated to footwear. Established a logistics center “ZOZOBASE Narashino” (Narashino City, Chiba). |
| Jun. 2020 | Launched D2C business “YOUR BRAND PROJECT Powered by ZOZO”. |
| Jul. 2020 | Acquired 100% ownership of “yutori Inc.” (Excluded from consolidation due to sale of some shares Dec. 2023) |
| Aug. 2020 | Launched “ZOZOGOLF” a zone specialized in golf merchandise. |
| Oct. 2020 | Introduced “ZOZOSUIT 2” a 3D body measurement suit. |
| Nov. 2020 | Announced a new strategy “More Fashion × Better Fashion Tech” and a mindset “Imagine the unexpected. Chart the unexplored”. |
| Jan. 2021 | Introduced “ZOZOGLASS” a skin tone capturing device, and started taking pre-orders. (Distribution started in Mar. 2021) |
| Feb. 2021 | Relocated the head office to Nishi-Chiba (Inage-ku, Chiba city, Chiba). |
| Mar. 2021 | Signed a sponsorship agreement with professional golfer UEDA Momoko, the first-ever sponsorship with professional athletes. Renewed ZOZOTOWN platform significantly. Launched “ZOZOCOSME” a platform dedicated to the beauty and cosmetic category, and “ZOZOVILLA” a zone dedicated to luxury & designer’s brands. |
| Apr. 2021 |
Announced Sustainability Statement “Fashion Connects and Leads us to a Sustainable Future.” and four Key Actions. |
| Jul. 2021 | Announced a collaborative effort to leverage ZOZOSUIT 2, with a professional basketball team “ALTIRI CHIBA” and Chiba University. |
| Oct. 2021 | Merged ZOZO Technologies, Inc. through absorption-type company split, and changed its trade name of split company to “ZOZO NEXT, Inc.” Announced “ZOZOMAT for Hands” a tool for 3D measurement of hand. |
| Nov. 2021 | Launched “ZOZOMO” an OMO-platform (Online-merge-Offline) that connects ZOZOTOWN and brands’ physical stores. |
| Mar. 2022 | Signed a sponsorship agreement with professional golfer ONISHI Kaito. |
| Apr. 2022 |
Introduced “ZOZOFIT” a body management service. (Distribution started in the U.S. in Aug. 2022) Shifted from Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) 1st Section to Prime Market by reviewing the market segments of the TSE. |
| May 2022 | Added “Explore your style Make you delighted.” to our management strategy. |
| Jun. 2022 |
Launched a new feature of fashion-specific social commerce on WEAR. |
| Jul. 2022 | Launched “FAANS” a sales support tool for store staff (official version). |
| Sep. 2022 | Launched “Made by ZOZO” a production support service. |
| Oct. 2022 | Added “Make a difference every day.” and “With Love” added to our mindset. |
| Dec. 2022 | Launched “niaulab by ZOZO”, an ultimate personalized-styling service and first-ever physical store in Omotesando. |
| Mar. 2023 | Signed a comprehensive partnership agreement with Tsukuba City. |
| Apr. 2023 |
Launched a new “ZOZO WORKSTYLE” with an updated personnel system, benefits, and working arrangements. |
| Aug. 2023 |
Launched a logistics center “ZOZOBASE Tsukuba 3” (Tsukuba city, Ibaraki prefecture; full-scale operations started in November of the same year). |
| Nov. 2023 |
Started offering item review function on ZOZOTOWN. |
| Mar. 2024 |
Opened a ZOZOUSED account within an online auction site “Yahoo! JAPAN Auction”. |
| May 2024 |
Renewed WEAR as “WEAR by ZOZO”, an app to find “your style”. |