The view from Japan: Land of rising optimism

As part of the Asia's Top 1000 Brands report, we asked experts from around the region to share in-country expertise on the factors driving branding in their markets. Akitoshi Shuto, president & CEO of Hakuhodo Consulting, shares the view from Japan.

With the government and central bank working in concert to boldly change fiscal policy and proactively send out information, the tide has turned in Japan. The yen and share prices are slightly shaky, but overall, the property value of stocks and real estate are improving, and export industries such as auto are recovering due to the weaker yen. This has contributed to a major improvement in consumer sentiment.

In fact, department store performance, which has been sluggish for the past few years, has been on the rise in recent months, and there are hints that big-ticket item purchasing is increasing. There is potential for growth from the demand side if this is reflected in summer bonuses and pay leading to expanded middle class consumption.

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Japan recovered quicker than expected from the 2011 tsunami, and preparations made by the government and the private sector based on past experience with disasters were pivotal. The strong sense of duty and high levels of education and motivation among ordinary Japanese people was another factor—their ability to find solutions on their own, without direction from above, played a major part.

At the same time, the nuclear disaster shook the confidence the Japanese had long-held in their government, politicians and experts in terms of energy and security. It is possible this trend of taking responsibility for social problems rather than leaving them to others to sort out will accelerate. We also believe that an increasing number of Japanese will now look beyond Japan and take an active interest in global issues, disseminating information and taking concrete action on issues affecting the world as a whole.

The trend we are seeing today is a shift from attempting to renovate the brand image in a mature/shrinking market, towards searching for new market opportunities such as entering foreign markets or creating new categories within the domestic market. Also, there is now greater focus on building brands, not only through communication, but also as an integrated strategy involving various functions inside the organisation. These changes have raised a new dilemma for portfolio management: should companies unify their brand image in all markets (mature/emerging markets, traditional/new categories), or should they use different brands for each.

The use of Line and other instant-messaging tools is also growing exponentially. Japan, which has revered haiku for centuries and was quick to take up mobile communication, is highly receptive to the exchange of short messages. Stickers and other communication tools are readily accepted by both young and not-so-young Japanese, in part due to the manga and anime culture.