日本家居用品零售商無印良品(Muji)的設(shè)計美學(xué)就像是一個包裹在禪宗公案里的謎語。
自從1983年在東京青山區(qū)開設(shè)了第一家樸實無華的店面以來,無印良品通過宣揚極簡主義的美德實現(xiàn)了利潤最大化,,通過拒絕品牌化打造了一個令人敬畏的品牌,,并最終通過敦促消費者簡約生活而發(fā)展成為一個極其復(fù)雜的全球商業(yè)帝國。
但疫情打亂了無印良品的修行之旅,,至少在美國是這樣,。
7月10日,無印良品美國公司以負債6,400萬美元為由,,根據(jù)《破產(chǎn)法》第11章申請破產(chǎn)保護,由此成為總部設(shè)在美國,,因受到新冠疫情沖擊而尋求此類保護的大型零售商之一,。
據(jù)《華爾街日報》報道,在無印良品美國公司的無擔(dān)保債權(quán)人名單中,,房東排在首位,。在新冠疫情爆發(fā)之前,無印良品在美國經(jīng)營19家店面,,分別坐落于紐約第五大道,、波士頓紐伯里街和洛杉磯好萊塢大道等黃金地段。該公司在3月中旬關(guān)閉了所有店面,,其中10家現(xiàn)已重新開業(yè),,但其銷售額僅為疫情爆發(fā)前的20%。
無印良品的母公司良品計畫株式會社現(xiàn)在有6個月的時間來提交重組計劃,??偛盟善闀员硎荆瑹o印良品無意放棄美國市場,,并誓言他將親自領(lǐng)導(dǎo)美國公司實現(xiàn)復(fù)興,。“美國是建立知名度的基石,?!彼嬖V《日本經(jīng)濟新聞》。
美國現(xiàn)在不幸淪為全球唯一一個新冠疫情持續(xù)肆虐的主要發(fā)達經(jīng)濟體,。要想在這樣一個市場中生存下去,,松崎曉就必須對無印良品的美國業(yè)務(wù)模式做出根本性調(diào)整。
2006年進入美國市場的決定既是必然之舉,,但也不乏自相矛盾之處,。日本人口的持續(xù)減少和老齡化迫使該公司不得不到海外尋找新客戶。然而,,季節(jié)集團創(chuàng)始人,,億萬富翁堤清二當(dāng)年與平面設(shè)計大師田中一光聯(lián)手創(chuàng)建無印良品的初衷,正是為了對抗以過度炫目著稱的美式消費主義。1980年,,季節(jié)集團旗下的西友連鎖超市推出普通雜貨品牌無印良品,,以合理的價格銷售40種包裝簡單的日常用品。無印良品的原名叫Mujirushi Ryohin,,意思是“沒有品牌的優(yōu)良商品”,。
2002年,田中一光在離世之際將制定無印良品設(shè)計理念的衣缽傳給了一個四人委員會,,其中包括兩位最著名的日本創(chuàng)意人士:產(chǎn)品設(shè)計師深澤直人和廣告與設(shè)計天才原研哉,。這個設(shè)計團隊將無印良品的產(chǎn)品線擴展到服裝、辦公用品和家具等領(lǐng)域,,但仍忠實于該品牌的極簡主義設(shè)計理念,。
無印良品在美國的第一家店面位于紐約SoHo區(qū),面積為3,200平方英尺(約合300平方米),,銷售2,000種產(chǎn)品,。但在接下來的十年里,該公司斷定,,要想在競爭激烈的美國市場立足,,就必須擴大規(guī)模。無印良品開始在一些黃金地段開設(shè)面積超過7,500平方英尺(約合700平方米)的大型門店,,每家門店都提供3,500多種產(chǎn)品,。該公司還順應(yīng)潮流,擴大了在線服務(wù),,但其美國戰(zhàn)略的重中之重仍然是店內(nèi)體驗,。
“我們認為門店是無印良品最重要的營銷元素?!睍r任無印良品美國業(yè)務(wù)總裁Toru Tsunoda在2017年告訴《快公司》,。“很多公司都在關(guān)閉零售店,,而我們正在竭力擴展零售店面網(wǎng)點,。”
顯然,,他們必須得重新考慮這一戰(zhàn)略,。
事實證明,無印良品在其他市場表現(xiàn)得更為靈活,。在占據(jù)營收總額60%的日本本土市場,,該公司經(jīng)營著477家門店。無印良品最近宣布,,將與旗下設(shè)計品牌Idée合作推出家具訂購服務(wù),,以幫助日本客戶建立家庭辦公室,。今年5月份,該公司宣布計劃與亞馬遜合作銷售約250種產(chǎn)品,,這是無印良品首次與外部電子商務(wù)平臺合作,。
無印良品還在中國大陸迅速擴張,目前共經(jīng)營273家門店,。在中國爆發(fā)新冠疫情期間,,該公司被迫關(guān)閉了其中大約一半店面,但隨著中國成功遏制疫情,,這些店面很快又重新開業(yè),。無印良品在香港和臺灣很有人氣。該公司剛剛在距離《財富》辦公室?guī)讉€街區(qū)之隔的地方開設(shè)了一家大型旗艦店,,這是它在香港的第21家門店,。無印良品在臺灣地區(qū)設(shè)有41家門店。
此外,,無印良品還將其反設(shè)計、“反華麗”的做法運用到酒店領(lǐng)域,,在深圳,、北京和東京開設(shè)了新的無印良品酒店。這些酒店同樣奉行時尚,、簡約而低調(diào)的風(fēng)格,,給人以一種置身于修道院的感覺。在去年3月召開的新加坡設(shè)計頭腦風(fēng)暴大會上,,松崎曉向我概述了一項雄心勃勃的計劃,。他說,無印良品尋求將極致簡約理念擴展到全球旅游和交通運輸市場,。但現(xiàn)在,,這一愿景因新冠病毒作祟而變得復(fù)雜起來。(財富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:任文科
日本家居用品零售商無印良品(Muji)的設(shè)計美學(xué)就像是一個包裹在禪宗公案里的謎語,。
自從1983年在東京青山區(qū)開設(shè)了第一家樸實無華的店面以來,,無印良品通過宣揚極簡主義的美德實現(xiàn)了利潤最大化,通過拒絕品牌化打造了一個令人敬畏的品牌,,并最終通過敦促消費者簡約生活而發(fā)展成為一個極其復(fù)雜的全球商業(yè)帝國,。
但疫情打亂了無印良品的修行之旅,至少在美國是這樣,。
7月10日,,無印良品美國公司以負債6,400萬美元為由,根據(jù)《破產(chǎn)法》第11章申請破產(chǎn)保護,,由此成為總部設(shè)在美國,,因受到新冠疫情沖擊而尋求此類保護的大型零售商之一,。
據(jù)《華爾街日報》報道,在無印良品美國公司的無擔(dān)保債權(quán)人名單中,,房東排在首位,。在新冠疫情爆發(fā)之前,無印良品在美國經(jīng)營19家店面,,分別坐落于紐約第五大道,、波士頓紐伯里街和洛杉磯好萊塢大道等黃金地段。該公司在3月中旬關(guān)閉了所有店面,,其中10家現(xiàn)已重新開業(yè),,但其銷售額僅為疫情爆發(fā)前的20%。
無印良品的母公司良品計畫株式會社現(xiàn)在有6個月的時間來提交重組計劃,??偛盟善闀员硎荆瑹o印良品無意放棄美國市場,,并誓言他將親自領(lǐng)導(dǎo)美國公司實現(xiàn)復(fù)興,。“美國是建立知名度的基石,?!彼嬖V《日本經(jīng)濟新聞》。
美國現(xiàn)在不幸淪為全球唯一一個新冠疫情持續(xù)肆虐的主要發(fā)達經(jīng)濟體,。要想在這樣一個市場中生存下去,,松崎曉就必須對無印良品的美國業(yè)務(wù)模式做出根本性調(diào)整。
2006年進入美國市場的決定既是必然之舉,,但也不乏自相矛盾之處,。日本人口的持續(xù)減少和老齡化迫使該公司不得不到海外尋找新客戶。然而,,季節(jié)集團創(chuàng)始人,,億萬富翁堤清二當(dāng)年與平面設(shè)計大師田中一光聯(lián)手創(chuàng)建無印良品的初衷,正是為了對抗以過度炫目著稱的美式消費主義,。1980年,,季節(jié)集團旗下的西友連鎖超市推出普通雜貨品牌無印良品,以合理的價格銷售40種包裝簡單的日常用品,。無印良品的原名叫Mujirushi Ryohin,,意思是“沒有品牌的優(yōu)良商品”。
2002年,,田中一光在離世之際將制定無印良品設(shè)計理念的衣缽傳給了一個四人委員會,,其中包括兩位最著名的日本創(chuàng)意人士:產(chǎn)品設(shè)計師深澤直人和廣告與設(shè)計天才原研哉。這個設(shè)計團隊將無印良品的產(chǎn)品線擴展到服裝,、辦公用品和家具等領(lǐng)域,,但仍忠實于該品牌的極簡主義設(shè)計理念,。
無印良品在美國的第一家店面位于紐約SoHo區(qū),面積為3,200平方英尺(約合300平方米),,銷售2,000種產(chǎn)品,。但在接下來的十年里,該公司斷定,,要想在競爭激烈的美國市場立足,,就必須擴大規(guī)模。無印良品開始在一些黃金地段開設(shè)面積超過7,500平方英尺(約合700平方米)的大型門店,,每家門店都提供3,500多種產(chǎn)品,。該公司還順應(yīng)潮流,擴大了在線服務(wù),,但其美國戰(zhàn)略的重中之重仍然是店內(nèi)體驗,。
“我們認為門店是無印良品最重要的營銷元素?!睍r任無印良品美國業(yè)務(wù)總裁Toru Tsunoda在2017年告訴《快公司》,。“很多公司都在關(guān)閉零售店,,而我們正在竭力擴展零售店面網(wǎng)點,。”
顯然,,他們必須得重新考慮這一戰(zhàn)略。
事實證明,,無印良品在其他市場表現(xiàn)得更為靈活,。在占據(jù)營收總額60%的日本本土市場,該公司經(jīng)營著477家門店,。無印良品最近宣布,,將與旗下設(shè)計品牌Idée合作推出家具訂購服務(wù),以幫助日本客戶建立家庭辦公室,。今年5月份,,該公司宣布計劃與亞馬遜合作銷售約250種產(chǎn)品,這是無印良品首次與外部電子商務(wù)平臺合作,。
無印良品還在中國大陸迅速擴張,,目前共經(jīng)營273家門店。在中國爆發(fā)新冠疫情期間,,該公司被迫關(guān)閉了其中大約一半店面,,但隨著中國成功遏制疫情,這些店面很快又重新開業(yè),。無印良品在香港和臺灣很有人氣,。該公司剛剛在距離《財富》辦公室?guī)讉€街區(qū)之隔的地方開設(shè)了一家大型旗艦店,,這是它在香港的第21家門店。無印良品在臺灣地區(qū)設(shè)有41家門店,。
此外,,無印良品還將其反設(shè)計、“反華麗”的做法運用到酒店領(lǐng)域,,在深圳,、北京和東京開設(shè)了新的無印良品酒店。這些酒店同樣奉行時尚,、簡約而低調(diào)的風(fēng)格,,給人以一種置身于修道院的感覺。在去年3月召開的新加坡設(shè)計頭腦風(fēng)暴大會上,,松崎曉向我概述了一項雄心勃勃的計劃,。他說,無印良品尋求將極致簡約理念擴展到全球旅游和交通運輸市場,。但現(xiàn)在,,這一愿景因新冠病毒作祟而變得復(fù)雜起來。(財富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:任文科
The design aesthetic of Muji, the Japanese home-goods retailer, is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside a Zen koan.
Since the opening of its unassuming, almost austere first shop in Tokyo's Aoyama district in 1983, Muji has maximized profits by extolling the virtues of minimalism, built a formidable brand by rejecting the idea of branding, and swelled into a complex global empire by urging consumers to simplify.
But the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted Muji's wa, at least in the United States.
On Thursday, Muji USA filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 citing debts of $64 million, joining a parade of other U.S.-based retail operations seeking such protection amid the pandemic.
Landlords top the list of Muji USA's unsecured creditors, according to The Wall Street Journal. Before the virus hit, Muji operated 19 U.S. stores in high-profile locations like New York City's 5th Avenue, Boston's Newbury Street, and L.A.'s Hollywood Boulevard. The company shuttered all stores in mid-March. It has reopened ten, but sales are running at 20% of pre-outbreak levels.
Muji's parent, Ryohin Keikaku, now has six months to submit a restructuring plan. President Satoru Matsuzaki says Muji isn't abandoning the U.S. market and vows he'll personally lead the revival. "The U.S. is the cornerstone in building name recognition," he told Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun.
If Muji is to survive in the only major developed economy where the virus continues to rage out of control, Matsuzaki will have to make radical adjustments to the company's U.S. business model.
The decision to go to the U.S. in 2006 was both inevitable and paradoxical. Japan's shrinking, aging population forced the company to look abroad for new customers. And yet Muji was created by Saison Group billionaire Seiji Tsutsumi and graphic design guru Ikko Tanaka as a rebuke to the blingy excesses of American-style consumerism. Saison's Seiyu supermarket chain launched Muji as a generic grocery brand in 1980. It sold 40 everyday staples in simple packaging at reasonable prices. The original name, Mujirushi Ryohin, means "no brand, quality merchandise."
When Tanaka died in 2002, he passed the mantle for setting Muji's design philosophy to a committee of four men that included two of Japan's most celebrated creatives, product designer Naoto Fukasawa and advertising and design prodigy Kenya Hara. The group broadened the product line to include clothing, office supplies, and furniture—but stayed true to the brand's minimalist design ethos.
Muji's first U.S. store, in New York's SoHo district, was 3,200 square feet and offered 2,000 different products. But over the next decade, the company decided that, to compete in America, it would have to supersize. It began opening big-box stores of more than 7,500 square feet in prime locations, each stocking more than 3,500 products. The company dutifully expanded online offerings, but the focus of its U.S. strategy was in-store experience.
"We perceive the store to be the most important element in Muji's sales," Toru Tsunoda, then-president of Muji's U.S. operations, told Fast Company in 2017. "A lot of companies are closing their retail locations...We're trying to expand to more locations."
Clearly, that strategy will have to be reconsidered.
Muji has proved more nimble in other markets. At home in Japan, which accounts for 60% of Muji's operating revenue, the company operates 477 stores. Muji recently announced that it will launch a furniture subscription service with Idée, its design brand, aimed at Japanese customers setting up home offices. In May, the company announced plans to team with Amazon to sell about 250 products, the first time it has ever worked with an outside e-commerce platform.
Muji also has expanded rapidly in mainland China, where it now operates more than 273 stores. The company closed about half of those during China's coronavirus outbreak but reopened them quickly as China contained the disease. Muji is hugely popular here in Hong Kong—where it just opened a giant flagship store, its 21st outlet in this city, a few blocks from Fortune's office—and Taiwan, where it has 41 stores.
Muji also has applied its anti-design, "anti-gorgeous" approach to the hotel sector, opening new Muji properties in Shenzhen, Beijing, and Tokyo. They are sleek, subdued, and border on the monastic. When I interviewed Matsuzaki at Brainstorm Design in Singapore in March of last year, he outlined ambitious plans for expanding Muji's vision of radical simplicity into the global markets for travel and mobility. For now, though, that vision has been complicated by the virus.