The food emporium at Hokkaido’s Shin Chitose airport is unsurpassed. No wonder packaged goods brands are elbowing in to reinvigorate street cred!
Want to see a master class in agricultural marketing? Visit Hokkaido’s shin-chitose airport
Japan
Steely grip, control and rubber. Unlocking the secrets of snow tyre marketing; Blizzaks in pole position
17% of all tyres sold in Japan are for snow. It’s a marketing gold mine.
The once acclaimed Cool Japan fund fights for survival; an ode challenging Governmental nannying
What can possibly go wrong with a venture fund generously financed by the tax payer topped up by token contributions from a selection of corporates? Quite a lot it seems. Japan and specifically modern Japanese culture like animé, media, fashion and food were cool. Why not brand and fund them to promote the growth of
Hands launches new corporate logo with Kanji squiggle
This post is an update on (Tokyu) Hands new logo and strategy. Yesterday the company, now a subsidiary of Cainz, revealed its new corporate ‘Hands’ logo. The design maintains Hands’s deep green but adds a new motif, based on the Kanji character of a hand. The new logo will first appear in Nagoya at the
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Olympus looks to the future appointing its second foreign CEO
The first time Tokyo listed Olympus appointed a foreign CEO it ended in tears. Michael Woodford’s tenure was short-lived. Woodford questioned huge fees paid to unknown companies which had links to criminal entities. Dismissed, he sued Olympus. The case concluded with a substantial out of court settlement in Woodward’s favour. Then Olympus was synonymous with
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Tokyu Hands changes hands; enter stage left Home Centre giant Cainz
Tokyu Hands was one of the first stores I visited when I came to Japan. I vividly recall their store in Tokyo with many more floors (and staircases) than I can remember; and then there’s the eclectic range of premium merchandise. Want something you can’t find elsewhere? Go to Tokyu Hands, said my colleagues. Founded
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Asahi beer’s gutsy relaunch of ‘Superdry’ smashes sales targets; short term stock outs!
35 years after its original launch Superdry, Asahi’s iconic beer brand was relaunched this spring. The launch involved a change of flavour to improve its ‘sharpness’ and ‘crispness’ according to the company. According to Asahi’s consumer preference tests over 90% of the target market preferred the new formula, a fact the company has referenced in
Asahi beer’s gutsy relaunch of ‘Superdry’ smashes sales targets; short term stock outs! Read More »
The Japanese love sport! Learn how your brand can succeed tomorrow in this $11 billion market!
The EU-Japan centre kindly asked me and my colleague Hiro Tsujioka to write a report on Japan’s sport equipment market. They have recently published it on their website. We’re also giving a webinar on this topic on the 28th June 2022. To access the report and webinar you’ll need to register with the Eu-Japan centre.
As the world shifts to EV, will Porsche’s turbo-charged Taycan entice Japanese enthusiasts?
Petrol prices in Japan are currently about 6% higher than the start of the year; they’ve actually dropped slightly since February. The prognosis looking forward isn’t good, one report from Trading Economics is forecasting US$1.63/litre in 2023 and $1.74 in 2024. With these headwinds, and generous Government subsidies for EV buyers (currently JPY650,000 or $5,132)
With flat revenues and mounting losses, is Aeon scared to reform its legacy and low margin retail businesses?
Aeon employs over 155,000 staff across a plethora of businesses ranging from General Merchandise, Supermarket and Drug stores, plus financial services and shopping centre developments. Although global retailers have been challenged to expand internationally (think of Tesco’s advance and retreat in the US, or Carrefour’s global pull back), Aeon has developed businesses in Hong Kong,