Announcement of Selected Companies for "Challenge Pitch 2026 ~NEXT SC~"

New Commerce Ventures Co., Ltd. (Head Office: Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo; Representative Directors: Keita Matsuyama, Kohei Okubo; hereinafter "NCV"), an industrial venture capital firm in the commerce and retail domain, in co-sponsorship with the Japan Shopping Center Association, announces that the companies selected to pitch at the "Challenge Pitch 2026 ~NEXT SC~" event have been decided. This contest is an initiative to widely solicit and support future-oriented business plans, aiming to maximize the strengths of the "physical place" that shopping centers (SCs) possess and to further develop them as social infrastructure. This marks the 4th holding of the event, and NCV will co-sponsor it as the pitch event partner supporting collaboration creation between startups and established companies.

1. Background and Purpose of "Challenge Pitch 2026 ~NEXT SC~"

Over 50 years have passed since full-scale suburban shopping centers (SCs) first appeared in Japan. SCs have diversified their locations and functions in line with the changing times, supporting people's lifestyles. On the other hand, with the rapid development of the digital society, the value of SCs as physical places is now facing a time of transformation. Within this context, to further enhance the experiential value that can only be provided by a "physical place" and to ensure SCs continue to develop as social infrastructure, it is crucial to incorporate new ideas and technologies and accelerate collaboration with startups and others. Based on this background, we will hold the 4th "Challenge Pitch 2026 ~NEXT SC~".

2. Challenge Pitch 2026 ~NEXT SC~ Overview

▼Official Event Page "Challenge Pitch 2026 ~NEXT SC~" on the SC Business Fair official website https://www.scbizfair.com/challengepitch/index.html https://www.scbizfair.com/challengepitch/index.html ▼Application Page / Advance Visitor Registration ▼Application Page / Advance Visitor Registration Please apply via "Visitor Information" on the SC Business Fair official website https://www.scbizfair.com/index.html https://www.scbizfair.com/index.html ▼Pitch Event Date and Time ▼Pitch Event Date and Time Friday, January 23, 2026, 11:00 AM - 1:30 PM (planned) *Concurrent event within SC Business Fair 2026 (held from Wednesday, January 21 to Friday, January 23, 2026) ▼Venue ▼Venue Pacifico Yokohama (within the SC Business Fair 2026 venue) ▼Presenting Companies (in no particular order), Presentation Titles ▼Presenting Companies (in no particular order), Presentation Titles ・Cellest Inc. "Turning idle time and vacant stores into new revenue streams with live commerce" ・SHINSEKAI Technologies Inc. "An ecosystem that maximizes social commerce" ・moze Inc. "Promotions utilizing the next-generation SNS 'Roblox' played by 150 million people daily" ・SkyBear Inc. "Japan's first! Overwhelming differentiation with indoor drone shows in SCs" ・Domuz Inc. "Implementation of 'high-quality gifting experiences' through fresh flowers integrated into SCs/retail" ・Pie Systems Japan Inc. "Turning 'tax-free' into a revenue opportunity: 'During-trip' individual customer purchase strategy starting from real points of contact" ・Reelu Inc. "A matching service for customer-facing staff to not miss out on inbound tourist sales" ・DXYZ Inc. "No entry pass or smartphone needed. Connecting entry/exit to payment with just your face: 'FreeiD'" ・Unicode Inc. "Creating an environment to focus on customer service and sales: The optimal solution for store-originated logistics 'ShipOne'" ・komham Inc. "Making waste disposal easier to understand. Operations transformed by microbial diagnosis and smart composters" ・CommerceX Holdings Inc. "Commercial facilities becoming 'regional food infrastructure' – The choice to create food loss reduction hubs in SCs"

3. About New Commerce Ventures Co., Ltd.

As an industrial venture capital firm supporting innovation creation in the commerce and retail domain, we support co-creation between startups and established companies and invest in startups. We provide multifaceted support, including hosting pitch events to create collaboration opportunities and supporting business expansion through investment. Company Name: New Commerce Ventures Co., Ltd. Head Office Location: Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo Representative Directors: Keita Matsuyama, Kohei Okubo https://newcommerce.ventures/ Website: https://newcommerce.ventures/ Managed Fund: New Commerce Explosion Investment Business Limited Partnership