The 7 Steps September
1. CONTEXT
Mindmap
anything you
know about thetopic, including
vocabulary. Do
some research
online to help.

Aeon
Listening Questions 1
1. How many companies does Aeon Group include and where is it
headquartered?

2. QUESTIONS.
2. What happened in 1970?
.

Read the listening
questions tocheck yourunderstanding.
Look up any new
vocabulary.

3. How did Aeon diversify its business?
.
4. When did Aeon start its push into Asia and what country did they start in?
.
5. How many shopping malls does Aeon have and in how many countries?
.
Listening Questions 2

3. LISTEN

1. What program did Aeon start in 1991 and what does it involve?
.

Listen and answer
the questions
using fullsentences. Circle
the number oftimes and % you
understood.

2. How many trees have been planted as of February 2017?
.
3. What are the 5 key components of ‘Smart Aeon’ stores?
.
4. How many ‘eco-stores’ are there, and what are they characterized by?
.
5. What is Aeon Group’s aim for females in management positions by 2020?
.

1

Listening 1
2 3 4

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Discussion Questions1Listening 2
2 3 45

1. Do you think Aeon’s diversification has been successful?
2. How has Aeon’s CSR activities enhanced their reputation as acompany?

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TRANSCRIPT 1

4. CHECK ANSWERS

Read through thetranscript andunderline theanswers. Checkthem against yourown answers.

Aeon made the decision to diversify its business, establishing its convenience store business
Ministop in 1980 and its credit service in 1981, which now constitute part of Aeon Group’sbusiness. Based on its sales figures of 8.2 trillion yen of revenue in 2016, Aeon Group is thesecond largest retailer in Japan behind 7&i Holdings, and the 10th largest in the world.

5. CHECK VOCABULARY
Read thetranscript andcircle any new
vocabulary you
find. Look themup and add themto your list.

Read thetranscript aloudat least 5 times,
focusing on
intonation andpronunciation.

223
3

4
455

7. SHADOWING
Say the transcript
aloud at the sametime as the audio
without reading
it. Circle how
many times
below.

1122334
4

Aeon Group’s current aim is to become the number 1 regional retailer in Asia. The origin of thisoverseas expansion started back in 1985, when they opened the first overseas mall in Malaysia.
This continued with rapid expansion into China and Hong Kong, and more recently the focus
has been on South East Asia. Attempting to enrich the lives of those in less fortunate
economies, they opened their first mall in Vietnam and Cambodia in 2014, Indonesia in 2015
and finally Myanmar in 2016. Aeon currently has 274 shopping malls globally in 13 countries.

MATCH THE SYNONYMS BY DRAWING LINES BELOW:

6. READ ALOUD11

Have you ever gone shopping at one of Aeon’s supermarkets or shopping malls? Aeon is theholding company of Aeon Group, which constitutes over 300 retail and financial companies
and has its headquarters based in Makuhari, Chiba. Originally established in 1926, it became
Japan United Stores Company, or JUSCO in 1970 after a merge of 3 traditional Japaneseretailers. It was renamed ‘Aeon’ in 1989, which originates from the Latin word for ‘eternity.’ It is
now the largest shopping mall developer and operator in Japan.

ConstituteInterconnect

Diversify

Sustain

EnrichIncorporateConductExpandEngageImprove

Conserve

Undertake

TRANSCRIPT 2
An area of CSR where AEON is quite influential is its environmental activities. Aeon launched its
Hometown Forests program in 1991 under its motto ‘Planting seeds of growth – We are Aeon.’
Trees are often planted in the surrounding areas of their shopping malls to make them a placefor people to visit and enjoy themselves. Tree planting activities are also conducted in thecountries where they have their malls, and as of February 2017, 14 441 925 trees have beenplanted.
In 2013, Aeon launched their ‘Smart Aeon’ stores, which engage their local communities andfocus on 5 key areas of conserving energy, disaster prevention, respecting the biodiversity of
the area, convenient transportation, and a consistent Internet and IT environment to help control
all of these factors. There are now 10 of these malls throughout Japan, part of a total of 23 ‘ecostores’ which reduce CO2 emissions by at least 20% more than regular shopping malls.

55In terms of diversity, Aeon Group has set itself some lofty targets. Of the 520 000 employees
they had employed as of 2017, they aim to have 30% of management positions held by women,
which will increase to 50% by 2020.