Comments on: BizCast Japan #9: Toto, Muji, Uniqlo, Mobile Phone Advertising, Construction, Sony Financial, Fingerprinting, and the State of Japan’s English Language Teaching Industry

by: Sony’s Play Station 3 Outsold Nintendo’s Wii in November : Japan Economy News & Blog

Sun, 02 Dec 2007 16:03:24 +0000

[…] Late last month, Steven Towns over at Seeking Alpha noted that during the weeks ending November 11 and 18, Sony’s Playstation 3 had outsold Nintendo’s Wii for the first time. This was also discussed in the most recent edition of BizCast Japan, when Albrecht Stahmer brought up the fact that Sony is now awash in cash, and that challenging Nintendo could be one possible strategic course of action for the firm. […]

by: BizCast Japan #9 Released at Trans-Pacific Radio : Japan Economy News & Blog

Sun, 02 Dec 2007 14:33:38 +0000

[…] BizCast Japan #9 has been released over at Trans-Pacific Radio. Albrecht Stahmer and I sat down to discuss what’s going on in Japan’s business scene, and we think this is by far our most comprehensive discussion yet. Topics covered include the migration of Japanese brands overseas (Muji, Uniqlo), Toto’s marketing push in the US, misleading mobile phone advertising, the decline in construction of new houses and condos, Sony Financial’s IPO, what the effects of fingerprinting all foreigners might have on Japan’s international business hub aspirations, and… […]

by: DeOrio

Wed, 21 Nov 2007 08:10:29 +0000

To change the subject away from the fruitless bickering I’ve started, the first day of fingerprinting went off without any large apparent hitches, but reports from Shinagawa are of less-than-reliable fingerprinting equipment. The shoddy technology or shoddy operation of the technology would be another good reason to doubt the efficacy of this harebrained scheme.

by: DeOrio

Wed, 21 Nov 2007 05:56:31 +0000

Ha ha! I’m comparing, for instance, a Muji washing machine with, say, a National washing machine like you’d buy at an appliance store, or a bed at Muji with a comparable bed at Nitori. I think the most fair comparison would be between comparable items at Muji and at a typical department store. I’ll grant you Muji’s cheaper clothes (largely because I just don’t know), but I’m starting to wonder where you shop.

IDC and Fran Fran are indeed much more expensive, but that’s kind of like calling a Cadillac a cheap car because it’s cheaper than a top-end Benz or an exotic car.

WHy don’t we do some comparison shopping at a variety of retail establishments? What do you think would be a fair list? I’d say:

- Dishes
- A bed & bedding
- A washing machine
- A suit (See? I’m throwing you a bone)
- A CD player
- A chair
- Some desk files
- Tea and pastries

I’d call that a representative sample.

by: Ken Worsley

Wed, 21 Nov 2007 04:50:23 +0000

Furniture, bedding, dishes, stationery, and other household goods tend towards the expensive side.

You seriously have to be kidding. Do you usually do your shopping at the Salvation Army? Seriously, compared to IDC, Fran Fran or any of the high-end designer furniture shops, Muji isn’t even half the price. It’s not as low as Ikea, but it’s a discount within the context of its market.

by: DeOrio

Wed, 21 Nov 2007 00:37:53 +0000

I know little about Muji’s clothes, but their appliances are certainly more expensive than competing products, especially considering that they tend to be, in keeping with the theme, the most stripped-down possible versions of such appiances available. Furniture, bedding, dishes, stationery, and other household goods tend towards the expensive side. Not the most expensive maybe, but certainly above average. If you compare Muji to, say, Isetan and Mitsukoshi, which flank it’s large Shinjuku-dori store, yes, it is slightly cheaper, but go two blocks away to the Muji in the Seibu-Shinjuku Station/ Prince Hotel building and it’s the most expensive shop in there.

Muji’s non-brand is a brand for which, apparently 12,000 yen suits aside, customers pay a premium. As far as target market goes, Muji appears to appeal to young, white collar urbanites, much like Isetan in many of its ads and promotional materials.

by: bingobangoboy

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 14:59:15 +0000

I also didn’t really understand the characterizations of Muji. I like Muji & have bought a lot of their products, but they’re not especially cheap OR especially high-quality. Paradoxically, it’s the brand image / distinctive style that draws customers. Their competitors would probably be Ikea or slightly higher-end boutique-type shops, certainly rather than Walmart…

by: Ken Worsley

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 06:36:53 +0000

Within the context of their market, Muji definitely is a discount retailer. 12,000 yen suits? Cheap home appliances and furniture? They’re physically located next to the large department stores - at least their full size stores are, and they are a lower-cost alternative to the big department stores. Whether or not that will be conveyed at overseas outlets is another question.

by: DeOrio

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 04:41:37 +0000

Which is just odd for the aforementioned reasons. I guess a better question would be why it is repeated. I have yet to see an American Muji, but in London they took the approach they take in Japan - promoting a certain simple style, as the name implies. The pricing system was interesting - they’d have, for example, a fork that sold for 495 yen (the Japanese stickers were on), then, to determine the London price, would add a decimal point, making that fork 4 pounds 95p, or over 1,000 yen - an absolute rip-off.

I’ve also noticed the New Yorker, Slate, and others describing UniQlo as a “Japanese fashion retailer,” which is not inaccurate, but certainly gives UniQlo a different image.

I still say Muji and Target are both discount retailers like both Chevron and the Sierra Club are environmental groups.

On a different Muji-related point, judging by self-selecting forums, it seems the brand is already developing a pretentious image, which is too bad - despite all I said above, I generally like Muji.

by: Ken Worsley

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 04:14:42 +0000

I’m not sure whence this idea comes.

From their own PR literature.