Word: muji
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...nightmare, but Yasui explains: "It might sound sarcastic, but it is the ultimate design--anonymous, free of décor, without mark. It is not a monster of functions. It is simple." The team's official name--Planning & Design/Material Development Office--hardly captures the creativity that directs Muji's household division, which includes furniture, housewares, stationery, fabric, electronics and health and beauty. The team's designs drive 55% of Muji's sales, about $1.5 billion...
...Muji develops products in two distinct ways: from scratch or with the intent to improve on an existing one. That latter approach shows up in Muji's "undesign" redesign of chairs and tables by the German brand Thonet. An "anonymous" brand is particularly challenged in health and beauty, a category with products that people generally like to have fun with and buy to pamper themselves, says category manager Madoka Nagamoto...
...Muji-created product often starts with dialogue among merchandisers, outside designers (about 10 in Tokyo and six overseas) and the design team. The team, which meets weekly, has to negotiate the demands from various departments. For example, when the team designs housewares, the size and scale of the furniture might be taken into consideration. The team regularly gets feedback on how well it's doing: Muji holds company-wide exhibits, from which about 80% of new items are chosen. A five-member advisory board--which fine-tunes and vets Muji products from start to finish--has the final...
...brand also incorporates consumers and new talent into the design process. The Muji Award, now in its third year, took on the theme of "Found Muji" and invited designers worldwide to submit ideas that adapt existing products to fit a different lifestyle. Last year's winners included a customizable towel and a stackable clothes hanger. "We're still a fairly new team," says Masayuki Yoshida, World Muji product manager, who is responsible for coordinating with outside designers. New and young: the average age of a category manager is 30. But the concept of "no mark, quality goods," which is nearly...
This doesn't mean Muji isn't aiming for bigger profits; the team also creates high-end furniture. But Yasui doesn't see it as a contradiction with the Muji brand. "We think of what we want and why it doesn't exist. That's where we begin...