Innovation in the Japanese tea industry, 1970–2020
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1344/jesb2023.8.2.38278Keywords:
marketing strategy, innovation, traditional industries, Japan, tea industry, IPRAbstract
This paper studies the technological innovation and new marketing strategies that enabled firms from traditional industries to pursue their existence in a disruptive environment. As a case study, we follow an approach from classical business history and industry studies, focusing on the Japanese tea industry to analyse how it has innovated to survive in a fast-changing environment over the last five decades. Based on various resources (official data from Tea Industry Association, patents and trademark data, reports, interviews, etc.), this paper emphasises three marketing strategies that supported its survival: product development based on technological innovation (transformation of the true nature of green tea from a commodity to a branded good), brand management (repositioning of some specific teas in the growing luxury market) and internationalisation (expansion in foreign markets through exports). This research also emphasises the major role played by large corporations to support industrial transformation.
Downloads
References
Bird, Allan, and Michael J. Stevens. 2003. “Toward an emergent global culture and the effects of globalization on obsolescing national cultures.” Journal of International Management 9(4):395-407. Accessed July 28, 2022. doi:10.1016/j.intman.2003.08.003.
Bouwens, Bram, Pierre-Yves Donzé, and Takafumi Kurosawa, eds. 2017. Industries and global competition: A history of business beyond borders. New York: Routledge.
Burenhult, Göran. 1994. Traditional peoples today: Continuity and change in the modern world. Queensland: University of Queensland Press.
Catalan, Jordi. 2017. “The life-cycle of the Barcelona automobile-industry cluster, 1889-2015.” Revista de Historia Industrial 26(66):77-125. Accessed July 28, 2022. doi:10.1344/rhi.v26i66.21251.
Cha Kankei Shiryo. 2020. Cha Kankei Shiryo [Tea-related materials]. Tokyo: Kōeki Shadanhōjin Nihon Cha-gyō Chūōkai.
Chandler, Alfred Dupont, and Takashi Hikino. 1990. Scale and scope: The dynamics of industrial capitalism. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Comtrade. 2021. International trade statistics database. Accessed December 27 2021. https://comtrade.un.org.
Da Silva Lopes, Teresa, and Paul Duguid, eds. 2010. Trademarks, brands, and competitiveness. Vol. 19. New York: Routledge.
Donzé, Pierre-Yves. 2017. “From the industrial district to the global firm: Swatch group and the swiss watch industry, 1960-2010.” Revista de Historia Industrial 26(66):191-213. Accessed July 28, 2022. doi:10.1344/rhi.v26i66.21254.
FAOSTA. 2021. Food and agriculture organization of the United Nations. Accessed December 27, 2021. http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/.
Fontana, Roberto, Alessandro Nuvolari, Hiroshi Shimizu, and Andrea Vezzulli. 2013. “Reassessing patent propensity: Evidence from a dataset of R&D awards, 1977–2004.” Research Policy 42(10):1780-92. Accessed July 28, 2022. doi:10.1016/j.respol.2012.05.014.
Fosfuri, Andrea, and Marco S. Giarratana. 2009. “Masters of war: Rivals' product innovation and new advertising in mature product markets.” Management Science 55(2): 181-91. Accessed July 28, 2022. doi:10.1287/mnsc.1080.0939.
Fujimori, Shin. 2001. “Kō sureba ureru (3) fudan no ocha o oishiku — Nihon cha ni toku-ka shita senmon mise Uogashimeicha (Tōkyōto) [If you do in such a way, you can sell (3) make the daily tea delicious- A specialty store specializing in Japanese tea Uogashimeicha].” Cha 54(8):26-29. Accessed July 28, 2022. https://cir.nii.ac.jp/crid/1523388078279923200.
Gotō, Emi. 2015. “Yame cha no ichiba kakudai o mokuteki to shita senryaku-teki shōhin kaihatsu [Strategic product development aimed at expanding the market for Yame tea].” Ryūtsū Kagaku Kenkyū 15(1): 55-65. Accessed July 28, 2022. http://id.nii.ac.jp/1094/00002307/.
Hashino, Tomoko. 2018. The survival strategy of the Japanese kimono industry. In Global luxury: organizational change and emerging markets since the 1970s, edited by Donzé, Pierre-Yves, and Rika Fujioka, 257-274. New York: Routledge.
Ippodo. 2012. “Atarashī juyō no hōkō o kangaeru shinise o tazunete (2) ima, kitai sareru chikara [Visit the long-living firms which consider the new direction of demand: the power that is expected now]. Sōgyō 290 yo-nen, rekishi no chikara: Ippodochaho.” Cha 65(2):1-2. Accessed July 28, 2022. https://cir.nii.ac.jp/crid/1523388079882960384.
Islam, M. Rezaul, and Cristiano Franco Burmester. 2020. “Impact of Globalization on Local Traditional Handicraft Industries in Brazil.” Journal of Globalization Studies 11(2): 108-120. Accessed July 28, 2022. https://on-demand.eastview.com/browse/doc/66431693.
ITO EN. 2001. Annual Report. Accessed May 18, 2021. https://ssl.eoldb.jp.
ITO EN. 2018. Annual Report. Accessed May 18, 2021. https://ssl.eoldb.jp.
ITO EN. 2019. Annual Report. Accessed May 18, 2021. https://ssl.eoldb.jp.
ITO EN. 2020. Annual Report. Accessed May 18, 2021. https://ssl.eoldb.jp.
Itoku, Shōgo and Shiori Shibuya. 2018. “Kirin “Namacha” no kyōgō ni taisuru burando senryaku o kangaeru: Burando kachi kōzō no shiten kara [Study of the “Kirin Namacha” branding: from the perspective of brand value constructions].” Jōhō Kenkyū, 58:1-19. Accessed July 28, 2022. http://id.nii.ac.jp/1351/00006796/.
Itoku, Shōgo. 2016. “Burando-ron no shiten kara santorī `iemon' o kangaeru: Burandingu no merukumāru to shite [Study of brand development steps using “Suntory Iemon” as an example].” Jōhō Kenkyū 54:1-17. Accessed July 28, 2022. http://id.nii.ac.jp/1351/00003538/.
J-PlatPat. 2021. Official website of J-PlatPat. Accessed December 27. https://www.j-platpat.inpit.go.jp.
Japan Tea Export Promotion Council. 2017. “`Beikoku ni okeru matcha ryūtsū shōhi dōkō chōsa' hōkoku-sho [Matcha distribution and consumption trends in the United States].” Accessed December 27. https://www.nihon-cha.or.jp/export/pdf/180131_JTEC.pdf.
Kajiwara, Katsumi. 2012. “Ocha no burando māketingu [Some Studies on Green Tea from the viewpoint of Brand Marketing].” Shakai Kagaku Nenpō 46:3-15. Accessed July 28, 2022. http://id.nii.ac.jp/1682/00008915/.
Kaneko, Hidemitsu, and Kazuyoshi Maruyama. 2017. “Kimono sangyō ni okeru kakushin to tayō-sei no manejimento: Tōkamachishi kabushikigaisha kimonoburein no jirei kenkyū [Manage innovation and diversity in the kimono industry: a case study of Tokamachi City Kimono Brain Co.].” Jigyō Sōzō Daigakuin Daigaku Kiyō 8(1):77-90. Accessed July 28, 2022. http://id.nii.ac.jp/1686/00004844/.
Kapferer, Jean-Noël, and Vincent Bastien. 2012. The luxury strategy: Break the rules of marketing to build luxury brands. London: Kogan Page Publishers.
Kirishima, Toshiaki. 2015. “Uji no Roseicha kabushikigaisha no Nihon cha yushutsu ni tsuite (tokushū Nihon cha no yushutsu senryaku) [Japanese tea export by Ujinoroseicha company (Special collection: Japanese tea export strategies).” Ryokucha Tsūshin: Sekairyokuchakyōkai Kikan-shi 37:7-10. Accessed July 28, 2022. https://cir.nii.ac.jp/crid/1520291855421129472.
Kitabata, Kōtarō. 2014. “Nihon cha no kaigai tenkai: Kabushikigaisha Itōen no Hokubei ichiba shinshutsu no kēsu [Overseas development of Japanese tea: Case of ITO EN's entry into the North American market].” Kyōtodaigaku Keiei Kanri Daigakuin. Accessed May 18, 2022. http://hdl.handle.net/2433/197767.
Kurosawa, Takafumi. 2017. “Industry history: Its concepts and methods.” In Industries and global competition: A history of business beyond borders, edited by Bouwens, Bram, Pierre-Yves Donzé, and Takafumi Kurosawa, 1-24. New York: Routledge.
Mason, Mark. 1992. American multinationals and Japan: The political economy of Japanese capital controls, 1899-1980. Cambridge: Harvard University Asia Center.
Masuda, Yoshiaki. 1984. “Kin'nen no ryokucha shōhi mondai ni kansuru kōsatsu [Investigation of green tea consumption issues in recent years].” Nōrin-gyō Mondai Kenkyū 20(3): 115-123. Accessed July 28, 2022. doi:10.7310/arfe1965.20.115.
Masuda, Yoshiaki. 1986. Cha no keizai bunseki [The economic analysis of tea], Tokyo: nōrin tōkei kyōkai.
Miranda, Jose A., and Borja Montaño. 2017. “Technological innovation in industrial districts in Spain during the first third of the 20th century.” Revista de Historia Industrial 26(66): 127-157. Accessed July 28, 2022. https://revistes.ub.edu/index.php/HistoriaIndustrial/article/view/21252.
Mitsui Norin. 2021. Official website of Mitsui Norin. Accessed December 27, 2021. https://www.mitsui-norin.co.jp.
Miyamoto, Matao, and Makoto Kasuya. 2009. Keiei-shi Edo no keiken 1600 ~ 1882 [Business history: The experience from Edo 1600 ~ 1882]. Kyoto: Mineruva Shobō.
Mizuno, Haruna. 2015. “Wagakuni ni okeru cha no yushutsu senryaku ni tsuite (tokushū Nihon cha no yushutsu senryaku) [The export strategy of tea in our country (Special collection: the export strategy of Japanese tea)].” Ryokucha Tsūshin: Sekairyokuchakyōkai Kikan-shi 37:3-6. Accessed July 28, 2022. https://cir.nii.ac.jp/crid/1521136280060808064.
Murayama, Takatoshi. 2006. “[Ronsetsu] wagakuni seiryō inryō bijinesu ni okeru jigyō tokusei no keisei ni tsuite ―― kokusai hikaku kara mita Nihon ichiba no tokui-sei ――. [The formation of business characteristics in the Japanese soft drinks business: the uniqueness of the Japanese market from the perspective of international comparison].” Tōhoku Gakuin Daigaku Tōhoku Sangyō Keizaikenkyūsho Kiyō 25:69-106. Accessed July 28, 2022. http://hdl.handle.net/10097/38060.
Nikkan Keizai Tsushin. (1974-2019). Shurui shokuhin sangyō no seisan hanbai shea [Alcoholic beverage and food industry production and sales share]. Tokyo: Nikkan Keizai Tsūshinsha.
Nikkei MJ. 2017. “Kōkyū Nihon cha, kaigai debyū ――`bijutsu-hin' atsukai, 1-pon 200 man-yen (shoku no furontia) [Luxury Japanese tea, overseas debut – handled as artwork, 2000,000 yen per bottle].” Accessed July 28, 2022. https://t21.nikkei.co.jp.
Nihon Keizai Shimbun. 2020. “Sugimoto seicha, Shizuoka no matcha o Hokubei ni ― būmu oikaze, yōto kaitaku (chiiki-hatsu sekai e) [Shizuoka macha boom in North America – Exploration of new usages].” Accessed July 28, 2022. https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGKKZO61841340S0A720C2FFT000/.
Nobukawa Shun, Suzuki Takanari and Misa Chō. (2018). “Gurōbaru kigyō no genchi-ka hyōjunka ni kansuru kenkyū [Research on localization and standardization of global enterprises].” Waseda Shakai Kagaku Sōgō Kenkyū. Bessatsu, Gakusei Ronbun-shū 2017:5-19. Accessed July 28, 2022. http://hdl.handle.net/2065/00057291.
Nikkei Sokuhō. 2017. “`Matcha' no teigi yuruku yushutsu kakudai, nichiō EPA niramu [Loosen definition of "matcha" tea, export expansion and Japan-Europe Union EPA].” Accessed July 28, 2022. https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXLASDZ26H06_W7A820C1MM0000/.
Ōishi, Sadao. 1983. Nihon cha-gyō hattatsu-shi. Vol. 1 [The development history of the Japanese tea industry. Vol. 1]. Osaka: Nōsan gyoson bunka kyōkai.
Pilapitiya, Herath Mudiyanselage Chamila Gayani, Saliya De Silva, and Hideo Miyazaki. 2020. “Innovative value addition in tea industry: Sri Lanka vs. Japan.” Research Square. Accessed July 28, 2022. doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-27492/v1.
Reinganum, Jennifer F. 1985. “Innovation and industry evolution.” The Quarterly Journal of Economics 100 (1):81-99. Accessed July 28, 2022. doi:10.2307/1885736.
Ritzer, George, and Elizabeth L. Malone. 2000. “Globalization theory: Lessons from the exportation of McDonaldization and the new means of consumption.” American Studies 41(2/3):97-118. Accessed July 28, 2022. https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1027196.
Robertson, Roland. 2018. “Social theory, cultural relativity, and the problem of globality.” In Sociology of Globalization: Cultures, Economies, and Politics, edited by Keri E. Iyall Smith, 61-67. New York: Routledge.
Scranton, Philip, and Patrick Fridenson. 2013. Reimagining business history. Baltimore: JHU Press.
Sugita, Naoki. 2006. “Nihon cha yushutsu to kokusai māketingu [Japanese tea export and international marketing].” Nōgyō Keiei Kenkyū, 44(1):111-116. Accessed July 28, 2022. doi:10.11300/fmsj1963.44.1_111.
Takeda, Yoshiyuki. 2020. “Nihon ryokucha no tenkan-ten: Seisan, shōhi, yushutsu (tokushū sekai ryokucha kaigi 2019: Sekai no ryokucha ichiba kakudai e no tenbō) [The turning point for Japanese green tea: Production, consumption and exports (World Green Tea Congress 2019: Prospects for expanding the global green tea market)].” Ryokucha tsūshin = World Green Tea Association Bulletin: Sekairyokuchakyōkai Kikan-shi 46: 3-7. Accessed July 28, 2022. https://cir.nii.ac.jp/crid/1521417755882613760.
Takehara, Yoshirō. 2010. “Furukute atarashī `Kyōto no kaisha' ni manabu (4) sekai kijun de "CHA" michi o kiwameru (kabu) Fukujuen no `nito o ou' keiei [Learn from old but new company from Kyoto (4) master CHA with global standards: the management of chasing two hares from Fukujuen].” PHP Business Rebyū 59:64-71. Accessed July 28, 2022. https://cir.nii.ac.jp/crid/1521417755048895360.
Teikoku Data Bank Historical Museum. 2018. Jiba sangyō: Dentō to kakushin no kiseki (Traditional industries: the miracle of tradition and innovation). Tokyo: Teikoku Data Bank Historical Museum.
Tea Producer Association. 2020. Cha no jukyū cha-rui no kokunai shōhi-ryō no suii [The supply and demand of tea: changes in domestic consumption of tea]. Accessed December 27. https://www.zennoh.or.jp/bu/nousan/tea/seisan01b.htm
Tsuji, Toshiyuki, and Hiroshi Uda. 2017. “Mise hito ima (291) Nihon cha bunka o hasshin shi aratana hanro de nanto sekaikakukoku ni 15 tenpo o tenkai Tsuji Toshiyuki-shi (kabu) tsujiri chaho (Nissenren Kitakyūshū) [Introduce Japanese tea culture through new sales channels: Tsuji tea has expanded tea shops in 15 countries around the world].” Senmon-ten 762:24-28. Accessed July 28, 2022. https://cir.nii.ac.jp/crid/1523669554639369856.
Tōhoku Sangyō Kassei-ka Sentā. 2004. Dentō sangyō shin jidai! : Mukashinagara no mono-dzukuri ga ima ni ikiru: Furusato-ryoku chiiki burando-ryoku o takameru [New era of traditional industries! : Old-fashioned craftsmanship lives on today: enhance the power of the hometown and local brands]. Tokyo: Nihon Chiiki Shakai Kenkyūjo.Uogashi. 2021. Official website of Uogashi. Accessed December 27. https://www.uogashi-meicha.co.jp/shop_ginza/.
Xia, Qing, and Pierre-Yves Donzé. 2021. “Surviving in a declining industry: A new entrepreneurial history of nihonsakari since the 1970s.” Business History:1-20. Accessed July 28, 2022. doi:10.1080/00076791.2021.1991318.
Xia, Qing and Pierre-Yves Donzé. 2022. “Making Japanese tea a big business: The transformation of ITO EN since the 1960s.” Shashi: the Journal of Japanese Business and Company History 7(1): 22-34. Accessed July 28, 2022. doi: 10.5195/shashi.2022.64.
Yanagawa, Takayuki. 1994. “Mēkāmāketingu no seikō rei to shippai rei [Manufacturer marketing successes and failures].” Hakuōdaigaku Ronshū 9(1):141-170. Accessed July 28, 2022. http://id.nii.ac.jp/1510/00001142/.
Yoshimoto, Keiko. 2015. Waga sha no ocha ga 1-pon 30 man-yen demo ureru riyū [The reason why our tea could be sold even at the price of 300,000 yen per bottle]. Tokyo: Shōdensha.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Journal of Evolutionary Studies in Business
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
