Japan Marketing News

Super-flexible monitor bends, twists and lies flat

I haven't been following Japanese PC and peripheral news as closely as I'd like recently, but this monitor from Eizo caught my eye yesterday as I was flipping through a trendy magazine (click on the image for a larger view). The Eizo MyStyle 112 is a semi-customizable monitor that can be ordered with a tremendously flexible EZ-UP stand that lets you lift, turn and tilt the screen to almost any angle; you can even set it on a table and fold it flat as if you were reading a book. The screen can also be freely rotated, giving users the ability to work in either vertical or landscape orientations (a big plus for designers and photographers). The standard 17" model with speakers and EZ-UP stand goes for about ¥48,000 on Eizo's direct-order Japanese website.

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Cool Japanese Products: Eneloop

Here's one of those ground-breaking Japanese products that is well worth celebrating.

Sanyo's Eneloop is a nickel metal hydride rechargeable battery that has the potential to really change how we think of power cells.

It's revolutionary for a number of reasons:

- Unlike other rechargeables, Eneloop batteries come fully juiced right out of the package so they're just as convenient as throw-aways.
- Each battery has a lifetime of about 1,000 charges. Now that's performance!
- The self-discharge rate is very low so the batteries keep 85% of their charge after 1-year of non-use and 75% after 2 years.
- Eneloop is comparatively more powerful and longer-lasting than dry cell batteries and performs better in low-temperature situations.
- It's designed for easy recycling.

Moreover, the product is beautifully designed and has won several awards.

Eneloop was launched in Japan in the autumn of 2005 and is available in many overseas markets as well.

More info in English here and here.

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Coca-Cola Japan: buy a can of coffee, win a Mercedes Benz

It's pretty common in Japan for beverage manufacturers to attach collectible miniatures to products to promote impulse purchases at retail (especially amongst teen and young adult males).

In a current campaign, Coca-Cola Japan is giving away Mercedes Benz classic car miniatures to consumers who buy Georgia canned coffee at convenience stores. The promotion started on February 13 and is running until March 31. Ten models comprise a complete set of the cars (click on the image to get a closer look).

Besides getting a cool little freebie, consumers also have the chance to participate in a prize drawing for a new Mercedes Benz E300 station wagon. Entering is simple enough: just fill out a form on the Georgia website. How do consumers know about the website? The address is printed on a sticker affixed to the miniature car package (and likely also appears in mass media ads).

In Japan, consumer promotions fall into two types which are regulated by the Fair Trade Commission. A "closed type" requires consumers to purchase a product and send proof of purchase along with a completed entry form. These types of campaigns are restricted in the scale of prize they can offer (a specific multiple of the retail price of the product). On the other hand, "open" campaigns involve much larger prizes and anyone can enter without making a purchase. Geogia's website promotion is an example of the latter.

In addition to restrictions regarding prize values, Japan's FTC also imposes specific requirements regarding announcement of consumer promotions. The type of promotion dictates the type of communications vehicles that must be used to advertise such campaigns.

In addition to the Mercedes campaign, Coke is also running ongoing closed promotions involving Georgia. Each can of coffee is affixed with removable "point stickers" that consumers can collect and trade for prizes. The Georgia website provides details on the available goodies and the number of points needed for each.

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Diesel to open first accessories stores in Japan

This coming Friday (2/23), DIESEL Japan will open its first accessories specialty shop in Japan. The 108 sq. meter store will be located in Daikanyama. DIESEL will unveil a second specialty location in Shibuya Parco on March 1, and the brand hopes to open an additional 18 stores in Japan over the next three years.

DIESEL already stocks bags, small leather goods, shoes, sunglasses and watches at its existing locations in Japan, but decided to begin offering these items in specialty shops to tap Japanese consumers' strong appetite for such products. The brand will continue to sell accessories in its clothing stores, but the specialty shops will carry the full lineup along with special limited-edition items.

DIESEL launched its first accessories shops in Italy in 2005, but, according to Nikkei, the company decided to shift the focus for such openings to Asia thanks to the stronger demand in far eastern markets.

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More co-branded cell phones released in Japan

In a December 2006 post, I mentioned that Softbank and Swarovski had teamed up to release a co-branded cell phone to appeal to Japan's trendy consumers. More of such pairings were bound to emerge, and we've begun seeing them with the unveiling of Japan's latest crop of portables. Some of the new collaborations include a Benetton PHS phone manufactured by Wilcom, a rainbow of 20 new color models created by Softbank and Pantone, and various devices that employ Sony Bravia or Sharp Aquos displays. However, the pairing that's most caught my attention is the partnership between NTT DoCoMo and handbag brand Samantha Thavasa, which released the 903i STNY model (pictured above) at the beginning of this month. Right now, this item is only available in markets near Osaka and Kyoto, but if it sells well, we're surely going to see many more Japanese cell phones designed around fashion brands. Prada and other style houses have already lent their imprints to handsets being sold in other countries, so it's possibly only a matter of time before luxe leaders such as Louis Vuitton and Gucci join the act in Japan.

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Japanese supermarket sales down 10 years running

According to data recently released by the Japan Chain Store Association, aggregate sales at Japan's supermarkets were down 2.7% in 2006 vs. 2005. This was the tenth year in a row that revenues dropped.

The worsened performance was largely due to falling sales for non-food items such as clothing, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, furniture and electronics. Food revenues were off just 0.7% versus the previous year while sales from clothing—the second largest category at Japanese supermarkets—fell by 4.6% because of unusual weather patterns.

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Cool Interactive Japanese Advertising: fango

Every once in a while I like to celebrate great Japanese websites. The above image is a screenshot from the virtual home of fango, a beauty and treatment spa in Tokyo. Featuring gorgeous photography and an elegant design, the site is a pleasure to navigate. Although it's in Japanese, you should be able to find your way around with little trouble.

Click here to take a look.

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