AI-driven initiatives starting to bear fruit overseas too

Research evidence excerpt

AI-driven initiatives starting to bear fruit overseas too

Global Markets Research

14 July 2026Kao

4452.T 4452 JP / EQUITY: JAPAN TOILETRIES & COSMETICS

AI-driven initiatives starting to bear fruit overseas Rating Buytoo

Target price JPY 3,775Quick Note

Closing price

14 July 2026 JPY 3,279Marketing strategy briefing

Kao held a marketing strategy briefing on 14 July, given by Hirofumi Ito, head of the (Note: Quick Note reports are not a

company's marketing innovation center. It spoke about its initiatives to get its products vehicle for changes to ratings, target

chosen by AI and consumers amid changes in consumer behavior, including the use of prices, or earnings forecasts)

agentic commerce as AI becomes more widely used. It had previously spoken along

similar lines at its recent CEO briefing (see our 25 June 2026 Quick Note Kao(4452JP)

(Buy)-SpeedingupbusinesswithAI), but we liked the way it said that its marketing

initiatives were gradually starting to bear fruit overseas as well as in Japan. The company Research Analysts

is looking to improve margins at its global consumer care operations overseas, which are

Japan toiletries & cosmeticslower than in Japan, by improving the accuracy of its initiatives, and we will be keeping a

Yuji Ohana - NSCclose eye on developments. The main takeaways from the briefing are as follows.

yuji.ohana@nomura.com

Strengths: AIs tend to prefer highly reliable evidence, and management thinks this puts +81-3-6703-1143

Kao at an advantage given the scientific knowledge about products and technologies it

has built up over many years. Another strength is its large number of AI staff, including

some 5,000 citizen developers around the world.

Initiatives: Kao operates a group-wide Global Marketing i-Kao system to accumulate data