| Invested through |
|
|---|---|
| Asset Classes | Listed equity |
| Impact strategy | Impact Equities and Bonds |
| ISIN code | JP3856500008 |
| Industry group | Consumer Discretionary |
| Aligned with SDGs |
Poppins is a Japanese company providing child and elderly care services. The group currently operates 326 childcare and educational facilities, in addition to 5 elderly facilities. The company operates through three business segments. Edu-Care provides a combination of early childhood education and care to children either directly operated or outsourced education center facilities.
Family Care includes childcare and elderly care. In both cases the company acts as a coordinator/concierge to connect the service provider and users.
Other includes education and training, recruitment and a research institute focused on child sciences.
The company is active in Japan and was founded in 1987 by Noriko Nakamura.
Investment rationale
Through its services, Poppins stimulates the development of young children. High-quality childcare is associated with positive impact on social and emotional development of children. It also positively affects their cognitive abilities and school readiness. Note that quality of care is key here, as the opposite can happen when the care provided is of lower quality. Within the sector, the Poppins brand stands for high quality. This is demonstrated by the company's customer satisfaction in 2020 (98%) and ISO certifications (ISO 9001 and ISO/IEC 27001).
The company also plays a role in reducing the gender gap in labour force participation. In Japan, this gap amounts to 20.1% (70.6% participation for men vs 50.5% for women). For other developed countries the gap is between 10 to 12% (all based on ILO data). The same ILO study finds that lack of affordable childcare is one the two key reasons for women not being part of the labour force (the other one is being married/having a partner). So, childcare is a clear enabler for women to join the workforce, and thus enhancing equality between man and women. Moreover, a study from Bright Horizons Family Solutions also found that female managers believed that the availability of childcare enabled them to pursue or accept a higher position.