Ryohin Keikaku Co. Ltd.

Year Event (Brief Summary)

1980 Established as a private brand of Seiyu
1989 Ryohin Keikaku Co., Ltd. established
1990 Muji business transferred from Seiyu to Ryohin Keikaku
~Present Expand its business locally and globally as the map shows

Sources: Ryohin Keikaku Website https://ryohin-keikaku.jp/eng/corporate/history/, https://ryohin-keikaku.jp/eng/corporate/about.html,

https://ryohin-keikaku.jp/eng/ir/business_info/, https://ryohin-keikaku.jp/corporate/pdf/2019_en.pdf (accessed 20/10/20)
 Success in MUJI
Competitition Landscape
Food / Stationary Furniture

Drug Store (cosmetic, toner, etc.) Fashion

Sources: Ryohin Keikaku Website https://ryohin-keikaku.jp/corporate/pdf/2019_en.pdf (accessed 20/10/20). Note; the chart for competition was self-made based on assumption.
 Business Canvas
short for
Local Communities Production Design Philosophy MUJI Passport Diversified Markets Mujirushi Ryohin,
e.g. India, China • Selection of materials, • Minimalism Contributing to • Apparel
streamlining of processes which means
• Developing products for Community Lifestyles – • Household Items
local markets outside simplification of packages Customer interaction via • Fresh Produce No Brand Quality
High Quality Products
Japan contributing to Problem-Solving mobile app • Goods
Hotel
creation of jobs • Solving customer’s
problems Environment friendly Loyalty to the no-brand
Mainly middle to upper-
Nissan Expansion strategy, minimalist
middle class, college
• 2001 Muji Car 1000 • Open shops in new country “Simple, Pleasant Life and approach
Society” students, businesspeople
as well as housewives
"at the heart of Muji
Whotells design is the Japanese
• Collaboration with Key Resources Sales Channels
Barcelona short-term • Ryohin Standards concept of Kanketsu, the • 970 stores worldwide
service apartment brand • Recycled Materials concept of simplicity", including directly
to design minimalist • Good designers in aiming to "bring a quiet managed and licensed
aesthetic minimalism sense of calm into stores
strenuous everyday lives” • Online web store
MUJI x UR • E-commerce
• Housing Complex
Renovation Project Source: MUJI Annual Report 2020

Product Development Operational Cost Sales from Sales from

• Focus on adhering to minimalist • Leasehold, store and office rents • Domestic Stores • Café & Meal MUJI Sources: MUJI Annual Report 2020
product design • International Stores • MUJI Home March 1, 2019 – February 29, 2020

Sales and Marketing • Online Stores (E-Commerce) • MUJI Hotels http://mujiproject.blogspot.com/20

Across all MUJI products from 13/10/how-does-muji-manage-to-
apparels to household items be-no-brand.html
 Tacit Tacit

Shared resources
Believe in each other,
help each other Clean table policy

Explicit
Tacit Socialization Externalization
Do the right thing by MUJIGRAM
society
DINA System

Standardization Scenario application

Explicit
Tacit

Internalization Combination
Re-distribution to all stores Consolidation at headquarters

Explicit Explicit
 Perceive
Perceive Create Ba
Create Ba
Reality
Reality

Judgement
Judgement Articulate the
Articulate the
on
on Essence
Essence
Goodness
Goodness

Exercise
Exercise
Foster
Foster Political
Political Satoru Matsuzaki
Phronesis
Phronesis President and
Power
Power
Representative Director
 Conclusion MUJI’s Uniqueness
- Uniqueness of MUJI -

•SIMPLE CONCEPT
• Sell Lifestyle (a compact life with simple goods) not products

• Design  philosophy as minimalist - “MUJI is enough” 

• Japanese concept KANKETSU (simplicity) 

• Can be substituted by anything and can be adopted by any region/culture

•Underlying Structure
• Standardization. “MUJIGRAM” with employee’s involvement

• Shared concept based on materiality among company

• The products are common all over the world. No design center outside Japan.

SOURCE| Tomoko Masuda “MUJI shirki” Nikkei BP

 Looking Back to Look Ahead

Satisfactory expansion in Japan

• Lifestyle products

• Restaurants & Hotels (MUJI HOTEL and MUJI HOUSE)

 Overseas expansion getting its traction

• Took 11 year to establish its position in overseas market

• Thorough localization (same concept + different marketing) 

• MUJI was accepted as a “sophisticate” “modern” “revolutionary” in Europe.

• COVID-19 forced US MUJI to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

SOURCE| Tadamitsu Matsui “The reason that MUJI succeed oversea” KADOKAWA