The Chairman of Ryohin Keikaku on charting MUJI's global expansion - 신민석 교수

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- Mujirushi Ryohin : No Brand , Good quality 

- In the beginning : The priority was not grow the business but to realise the concept (Finding demand for no brand brand.

- 1980s : Participated in an exhibition of Japanese products in London and sparked a great deal of interest from British retailers. 
 > Harrods (x) , Liberty (o) - More design focused. 
 > Muji's new goal : Spreading ethos of good, affordable, sustainable design throughout     the world. 
 > no competitors so They started the venture careful,deliberate manners. 
  
    * 3 ways to expand
    1. License deal 
    2. joint venture 
    3. Direct investment

- 1991 : They opened stay alone stores in London (Regent street) -> Local staff didn't know how to plan the mix of goods and the floor displays in the Muji ways. Hong Kong
- 1994 : Ended the partnership with Liberty and created a European subsidiary to run the first London store.
- 1995 : Another Asian travel hub- Singapore Thanks to Seiyu.
- 1998 : other countries in Europe / Economy crisis in japan - Withdraw form Hong Kong and Singapore.
- 2000: Ryohin Keikaku set about cleaning up Muji organisation.
- 2001: Established a Hong Kong subsidiary again.
- 2004: Established Muji-Korea while European expansion ( licensing deals in Scandinavia and Italy.
- 2005 : Entered mainland of China, They brought the real Muji to China to fight with fakers so opened the store in Shanghai.
- 2007 : Opened the first store in the U.S. (New York - Soho)

- 2008 : First priority was to ensure that the Muji experience - from walking into a store to buying and using our products- would feel exactly the same no matter where you where in the world. 

- 2017 : opened in Manhattan
- Open an new store only after the existing ones are running profitably.
 > They want to understand a country and its retail landscape,work our ant operational  kinks, and build a reputation through word of mouth before they expand within it. /  Long lasting products and companies.
- 418 stores in Japan -> 403 stores in 27 countries throughout Europe, NA , Australia and the middle east. 

- The joint venture with Liberty - Didn't go well : Strategic misalignment. 
 > Hands-on fashion would be the best way to present their concept, Liberty managers  had their own business to top ; Not on the top priority
- 1990s : Opened the store in Hong Kong (1991) 

- 2000s : 14 stores with Fake logo,brand in China.

- Quality control was still a concerns due to the huge land in China. 

- Their Global strategies : Set rules for store design, layout , and merchandising. 
 > All front line staff members the same training and to bring many locally hired store mangers to their offices.
 > Finally They could share all same data. 

- The barriers of expanding to the US 
 1. Long distance 
 2. the culture of consumer litigation 

- In places that have a surfeit of stuff to buy, They think the products can be particularly useful. 

- They focused on urban or uni areas where their e-commerce sales are strong in the US but there were still some huddles. 
 1. Based on Asian manufacturing 
 2. high cost of labour 
 3. lack of advertisements 

- Good product & Low price fit in the Japanese downturn. 
- They stick to their rules 
- Each local manger proposes a location on the meeting. 
- Make long- lasting products 















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