2010年 4月の記事一覧
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出光興産は、2013年をめどに石油精製能力を16％削減する。不振の国内石油事業を立て直す一方、有機EL素材等の成長分野に経営資源を投入する。どのような優良企業でも、いつまでも現業に依存し続けることはできない。石炭がエネルギー源の主役であった時代に、貝島炭鉱という当時の超優良企業があった。社員の福利厚生にも力を入れた素晴らしい企業であった。しかし、エネルギー源が石炭から石油に代わっても、貝島炭鉱は「貝島家は石炭を専業とすべし」という家訓を守って、事業領域を見直すことはなかった。そして、人々の記憶のかなたに消えていった。現在、国内の石油精製能力の約20％が余剰といわれている。電気自動車の普及に拍車がかかり、原子力発電のさらなる普及が見込まれる現状では、将来、石油が石炭と同じ運命をたどらないという保証はない。定期的に事業領域を見直し、事業環境の変化に対応して、会社を作り変えることが必要である。(Written by Shigeo Sunahara of CBC, Inc.)
No. 54: Review the business domain regularly. (April 26, 2010)
Idemitsu Kosan will reduce the oil refinery capacity by 16% toward 2013. While reorganizing the sluggish domestic oil business, the company will invest in promising business fields like organic electro luminescent (EL). No company can continue to depend only on the current business indefinitely even if it is enjoying the leading position in the market. In the days when coal was the major source of energy, we had Kaijima Coal Company that was then a super excellent company. It was a truly laudable company in the sense that it offered well organized family benefits to the employees. However, it never reviewed the business domain while oil was replacing coal as the major source of energy because it faithfully observed the Kaijima family’s precept that the Kaijima family should focus only on the coal business and fell into oblivion. The current surplus of domestic oil refinery capacity is estimated at 20% in Japan. Today, the spread of e-cars accelerates and nuclear power generation seems to be hot business. Under these circumstances, no one can say with great confidence that oil will not have the same fate as coal. It is necessary to review the business domain regularly and reorganize the company responding to ever-changing business environment.
No. 54: Review the business domain regularly. (April 26, 2010)
Idemitsu Kosan will reduce the oil refinery capacity by 16% toward 2013. While reorganizing the sluggish domestic oil business, the company will invest in promising business fields like organic electro luminescent (EL). No company can continue to depend only on the current business indefinitely even if it is enjoying the leading position in the market. In the days when coal was the major source of energy, we had Kaijima Coal Company that was then a super excellent company. It was a truly laudable company in the sense that it offered well organized family benefits to the employees. However, it never reviewed the business domain while oil was replacing coal as the major source of energy because it faithfully observed the Kaijima family’s precept that the Kaijima family should focus only on the coal business and fell into oblivion. The current surplus of domestic oil refinery capacity is estimated at 20% in Japan. Today, the spread of e-cars accelerates and nuclear power generation seems to be hot business. Under these circumstances, no one can say with great confidence that oil will not have the same fate as coal. It is necessary to review the business domain regularly and reorganize the company responding to ever-changing business environment.
低価格を武器に売上を伸ばす衣料品などの専門店が、相次ぎ大手百貨店に出店する。高級品の販売で独自のポジションを構築した百貨店も、低価格品を求める消費者の動向に対処できず、業績不振店舗の活性化が急務になっている。店舗の立地条件や規模など各店舗の特性に応じた対策が必要になっている。インターネットの普及により、消費者が入手する情報量は膨大になり、企業は短時間で消費の変化に対処しなくてはならない。しかし、これはどのような大企業にも至難の業である。そのため、顧客を獲得するという猟師の発想ではなく、呼び込んだ顧客の満足度を持続させる商品やサービスを、バランスよく育成する視点が必要である、つまり、雑草は取り除き、よく育つ植物を見極めてアレンジする、庭師の発想が不可欠である。移り気な消費者は、インターネットで何か新しい物を求めている。固定観念を捨てて、顧客を一度訪問した庭に釘付けにする能力が不可欠になっている。(Written by Shigeo Sunahara of CBC, Inc.)
No. 53: From a hunter to a landscape gardener (April 19, 2010)
Specialty stores like clothing stores that are enjoying soaring sales with inexpensive products are going to branch out in leading department stores in succession in Japan. Department stores that established their own position with high class products has been unsuccessful in coping with recent consumer trend that seeks for inexpensive products, and they are busily occupied in stimulating sales of branches suffering from poor results. They need to work out measures that respond well to the characteristics, such as location conditions and business size, of each branch. Information available for consumers is growing drastically with the spread of the Internet, and companies are required to cope with changes of consumer trend over a short time. It is, however, hardly possible even for a big company to satisfy timely the requirements of consumers who are growing more and more capricious and volatile. Now they need the viewpoints not from a hunter but from a landscape gardener. Hunters get customers, and landscape gardeners keep customers enjoying with well-balanced assortments of products and services. Landscape gardeners weed, and spot promising plants and arrange them beautifully. Consumers are whimsical and always looking for something new on the Internet. It has become vital to abandon the established framework and keep consumers excited and enchanted once they come in the company’s business domain.
No. 53: From a hunter to a landscape gardener (April 19, 2010)
Specialty stores like clothing stores that are enjoying soaring sales with inexpensive products are going to branch out in leading department stores in succession in Japan. Department stores that established their own position with high class products has been unsuccessful in coping with recent consumer trend that seeks for inexpensive products, and they are busily occupied in stimulating sales of branches suffering from poor results. They need to work out measures that respond well to the characteristics, such as location conditions and business size, of each branch. Information available for consumers is growing drastically with the spread of the Internet, and companies are required to cope with changes of consumer trend over a short time. It is, however, hardly possible even for a big company to satisfy timely the requirements of consumers who are growing more and more capricious and volatile. Now they need the viewpoints not from a hunter but from a landscape gardener. Hunters get customers, and landscape gardeners keep customers enjoying with well-balanced assortments of products and services. Landscape gardeners weed, and spot promising plants and arrange them beautifully. Consumers are whimsical and always looking for something new on the Internet. It has become vital to abandon the established framework and keep consumers excited and enchanted once they come in the company’s business domain.
アサヒビールが、ハウス食品のミネラルウォーター部門を買収する。ハウス食品は、83年に「六甲のおいしい水」で市場に参入した国産ミネラルウォーターの先駆けであるが、最近は、大手飲料メーカーとの価格競争に巻き込まれて、販売量が激減している。ミネラルウォーターのように、差別化が難しい商品は、価格競争に耐える能力が不可欠である。競争相手で値下げをすれば、値下げして対抗するしかない。量販店で大幅に値下げしている大手メーカーの商品がシェアを伸ばし、値下げできないメーカーのシェアが低下するのは当然である。差別化の難しい商品は、ブランド名だけで勝負はできない。有名ブランドの、輸入ミネラルウォーターも、希望小売価格が分からないほどの安値で売られている。景気の停滞で、ミネラルウォーターの販売量がさらに減少することが予想される。ハウス食品のケースは、中堅企業は差別化の難しい商品に手を出すべきではない実例を示している。(Written by Shigeo Sunahara of CBC, Inc.)
No. 52: Stay away from hard-to-differentiate products (April 12, 2010)
Asahi Breweries has decided to acquire House Foods Corp.’s mineral water division. As the pioneer, House Foods paved the way for Japanese mineral water products by introducing “Rokko’s Delicious Water” in 1983. However, sales of its mineral water have been decreasing drastically lately because of the fierce competition with larger beverage makers. The ability to live with price competition is vital to market products hard to differentiate. If competitors reduce the price, there is no way left for you to reduce the price to endure the competition. It is quite natural that leading makers capable of reducing price considerably increase the share, while smaller makers incapable of reducing price decrease the share in volume retailers. It is hardly possible for a hard-to-differentiate product to compete successfully in the market only with the brand name. At present, even such famous import brands as Volvic and Vittel are being sold at such low prices that no one can tell their suggested retail prices. Because economy does not seem to recover soon, sales of mineral water are supposed to continue declining. The House Foods case gives us a lesson that medium-sized companies had better stay away from hard-to-differentiate products. (Written by Shigeo Sunahara of CBC. Inc.)
No. 52: Stay away from hard-to-differentiate products (April 12, 2010)
Asahi Breweries has decided to acquire House Foods Corp.’s mineral water division. As the pioneer, House Foods paved the way for Japanese mineral water products by introducing “Rokko’s Delicious Water” in 1983. However, sales of its mineral water have been decreasing drastically lately because of the fierce competition with larger beverage makers. The ability to live with price competition is vital to market products hard to differentiate. If competitors reduce the price, there is no way left for you to reduce the price to endure the competition. It is quite natural that leading makers capable of reducing price considerably increase the share, while smaller makers incapable of reducing price decrease the share in volume retailers. It is hardly possible for a hard-to-differentiate product to compete successfully in the market only with the brand name. At present, even such famous import brands as Volvic and Vittel are being sold at such low prices that no one can tell their suggested retail prices. Because economy does not seem to recover soon, sales of mineral water are supposed to continue declining. The House Foods case gives us a lesson that medium-sized companies had better stay away from hard-to-differentiate products. (Written by Shigeo Sunahara of CBC. Inc.)
国内市場が低迷し、コスト削減に各社は大変な努力をしているが、1社だけの努力では、もう限界が見えている。先進国で売れれば、ビジネスが成り立った時代は終わり、新興国でどのように市場を確立するかが問われる時代になっている。新興国の市場で戦うには、どうしても、規模の経済性を追求することが必要になってくる。小売業界では、大手デパート同士の経営統合が、「規模の追及は必ずしもデパートにとって強みにならない」として、見送られた。しかし、小売業界といえども、内向きでビジネスができる時代は終わっている。規模の経済性を追求し、海外市場へ出て行かないと、グローバルな競争に負ける。グローバル競争における国内市場をニッチ市場と考えれば、規模の経済性の追求の重要性が理解できる。ニッチ市場で大活躍する企業も、さらなる発展を望むとすれば、規模の経済性を追求して、大企業が活躍する市場に食い込むしかない。(Written by Shigeo Sunahara of CBC, Inc.)
No. 51: Pursuing economies of scale (April 5, 2010)
Amid the stagnant domestic market, all Japanese companies are deeply absorbed in reducing costs to compete successfully in the market. It seems, however, that collaboration with other companies has become necessary because no company can achieve substantial cost reduction independently. The days that companies can prosper only by selling their products in advanced countries have gone, and it is now vital for them to establish the market in emerging countries. Like it or not, pursuing economies of scale is the strategy that every company has to pursue to compete in emerging countries. In the retail industry, two leading department stores did not materialize the management integration, saying that pursuing economies of scale is not helpful for stronger business structure of department stores. However, it should be noted that even the retail industry cannot expand sales with emphasis only on the domestic market. They have to develop the foreign market in pursuit of economies of scale. Otherwise, they will lose in the global competition. You can understand easily how important pursuing economies of scale is if you think the domestic market is a niche market in the global market. Even a company enjoying the great presence in a niche market, it has to pursue economies of scale and compete in the market where bigger companies have established positions should it hope for further expansion in business.
No. 51: Pursuing economies of scale (April 5, 2010)
Amid the stagnant domestic market, all Japanese companies are deeply absorbed in reducing costs to compete successfully in the market. It seems, however, that collaboration with other companies has become necessary because no company can achieve substantial cost reduction independently. The days that companies can prosper only by selling their products in advanced countries have gone, and it is now vital for them to establish the market in emerging countries. Like it or not, pursuing economies of scale is the strategy that every company has to pursue to compete in emerging countries. In the retail industry, two leading department stores did not materialize the management integration, saying that pursuing economies of scale is not helpful for stronger business structure of department stores. However, it should be noted that even the retail industry cannot expand sales with emphasis only on the domestic market. They have to develop the foreign market in pursuit of economies of scale. Otherwise, they will lose in the global competition. You can understand easily how important pursuing economies of scale is if you think the domestic market is a niche market in the global market. Even a company enjoying the great presence in a niche market, it has to pursue economies of scale and compete in the market where bigger companies have established positions should it hope for further expansion in business.
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