JUSCO is the acronym for Japan United Stores Company, a chain of "general merchandise stores" (or hypermarket) and the largest of its type in Japan. The various JUSCO companies are subsidiaries of ÆON Co., Ltd..
The JUSCO name was adopted in 1970 by a company originally founded as a kimono silk trader in 1758. Renamed ÆON in 1989, it operates stores throughout Japan under JUSCO and other names and also has a presence in Malaysia, Hong Kong, mainland China, and Thailand,
In 1985 the first JUSCO overseas store was opened, in Plaza Dayabumi, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, as a jointly-owned company with Cold Storage (Malaysia) and three local companies. It was the first time that a Japanese company had entered into a significant joint venture in the Malaysian retail industry. JUSCO assumed total operational control of the chain in 1988. Currently 18 JUSCO stores and supermarkets are in operation in Malaysia with another four confirmed openings and three planned stores by 2010.