Word: yoshiaki
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...Yoshiaki's life took a less refined path. His mother was one of Yasujiro's mistresses. This illegitimate son was the favorite, and he still praises his father as "the greatest entrepreneur I've ever met." While Seiji was merely given control of a money-losing department store, Yoshiaki inherited not only the railway and real estate portions of the empire but also his father's political clout: he is close to Prime Minister Noboru Takeshita, for example, and backed him in his fight for the leadership in 1987. A rugged sportsman who owns the national-champion baseball team...
Originally, Yoshiaki was thought to have more of his father's no-holds- barred business acumen, but Seiji showed prescience and boldness in leading the Seibu stores to the forefront of Japanese retailing. The increasingly astute businessman predicted that young, affluent Japanese would spend more than their parents and guessed that they would prefer high-priced, stylish goods. Seiji's rise has not been totally smooth. In the mid-1970s Yoshiaki rescued his half brother from ruin when the Seibu Kanko Kaihatsu company, a leisure, real estate and tourism group, incurred debts of $550 million. The terms of the rescue...
Seiji has been one-upped in some family matters as well. One can imagine his frustration when, in 1964, the younger, illegitimate Yoshiaki broke tradition and presided over their father's funeral as chief mourner. Twenty years later, when the funeral of Yoshiaki's mother was held at Tokyo's Zojo-Ji temple, a blimp reportedly flew overhead publicizing a newly opened store belonging to Seiji's group...
...Yoshiaki "seems less concerned about the family past," says a leading Tokyo business writer. He may not see his brother's steps onto his turf as significant. "It's no use comparing us. Our philosophies are different, and we are in different lines of business," Yoshiaki has said...
...Saison Group is branching out into hotels and what he calls the "comprehensive life-style" business. He wants customers at his stores to be able to buy a traveling bag, put it to use by booking a package tour, and take out a loan to pay for the journey. Yoshiaki has his own growth plans: he is looking at the expanding market in cable television and optical-fiber communications, in addition to more familiar resort-development projects at home and abroad. As they cross each ^ other's lines, will one brother decline to book tours to the other's hotels...