Mitsubishi's Evolution: From Shipping Firm to Global Conglomerate

Mitsubishi’s development is defined by key milestones that illustrate its transformation from a small shipping firm into a global conglomerate:

Foundations

• 1870: Yataro Iwasaki established the Tsukumo Trading Company, later renamed Mitsubishi in 1873.
• 1875: Mitsubishi purchased its first steamship, initiating its shipping business.

Growth and Diversification

• 1881: Mitsubishi expanded into coal mining with the acquisition of the Takashima Coal Mine.
• 1917: Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. introduced Japan’s first domestically produced car, the Mitsubishi Model A.
• 1934: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) was formed by uniting several Mitsubishi companies.

Post-War Recovery

• 1950: Allied occupation policies after World War II resulted in MHI being split into three separate entities.
• 1964: The companies merged back into MHI, which diversified into sectors such as aerospace and heavy machinery.

Modern Expansion

• 1970: Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) was founded as an independent company from MHI.
• 1980s: MMC partnered with Chrysler, establishing Diamond-Star Motors in the U.S.
• 2000s: Mitsubishi turned its focus to green technologies, launching the i-MiEV, one of the first mass-produced electric vehicles.

These milestones demonstrate Mitsubishi’s strategic expansion and adaptability, securing its leadership across multiple industries.
Mitsubishi's Evolution: From Shipping Firm to Global Conglomerate

Nissin Foods: Pioneering Ramen Innovation

Nissin Foods Holdings Co., Ltd., a renowned Japanese food company founded by Momofuku Ando in 1948, has revolutionized global dietary culture with its iconic invention: Chicken Ramen. Launched on August 25, 1958, Chicken Ramen, often dubbed "magic ramen," was a pioneering product that changed the way the world consumed instant noodles.

In the ensuing years, Nissin Foods expanded its reach internationally, bringing ramen to the United States in 1970 and establishing local production in 1972. This move marked a significant milestone, introducing Americans to the convenience and flavors of ramen, which now forms a staple part of over 85 billion meals worldwide annually.

To further share its expertise, Nissin set up its first overseas "My Cup Noodles Factory" and "Demae Iccho Factory" in Hong Kong. These facilities serve as interactive workshops, educating and engaging Hong Kongers in the art of instant noodle creation, fostering a deeper appreciation for this culinary phenomenon.

Today, ramen has become a global phenomenon, with each region boasting unique flavors and closely guarded secret ingredients. In Japan alone, ramen is omnipresent, with diverse styles ranging from the rich tonkotsu of Fukuoka to the soy-based shoyu of Tokyo. Internationally, ramen has adapted to local tastes, with creative variations like kimchi ramen in South Korea and laksa-infused ramen in Singapore.

Nissin Foods continues to innovate, introducing new flavors and product lines while maintaining its commitment to quality and convenience. Its legacy underscores the enduring popularity and adaptability of ramen—a culinary treasure enjoyed by millions worldwide.
Nissin Foods: Pioneering Ramen Innovation

History of Panasonic National

In 1918 Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing Works was established by Konosuke Matsushita, who was 23 years old at the time. In 1923, Konosuke Matsushita developed a breakthrough shell lamp for bicycles.

In 1927, Matsushita adopted the brand name "National" for a new lamp product. In 1955, the company began branding audio speakers and lamps for markets outside Japan as "PanaSonic", which was the first time it used the "Panasonic" brand name.

In 1935 Matsushita Electric Trading Co., Ltd. was established. The company was incorporated as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd in the same year and began expanding rapidly into a number of varied electrical product lines. During the 1930s it added such electrical devices as irons, radios, phonographs, and light bulbs.

In 1959 Matsushita establishes Matsushita Electric Corporation of America (MECA), the first post-war overseas sales company.

On October 1, 2008, the year marking its 90th anniversary, the company changed its name from Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. to Panasonic Corporation and corporate brand unified worldwide as Panasonic

Simultaneously, the brand name used for domestic white goods and housing equipment was sequentially switched from "National" to "Panasonic."
History of Panasonic National

History of Sharp corporation

Sharp Corporation came into being on September 15, 1912, when founder Tokuji Hayakawa established a metalworking business in a crowded neighborhood of old Tokyo.

The first of his many inventions was a snap buckle named 'Tokubijo'. Later in 1915 he invented the “Ever Ready Sharp Pencil,” a twist-type mechanical pencil that would later become the origin of the corporate brand. He called this product the Hayakawa Mechanical Pencil.

By 1916 Hayakawa begins manufacturing Ever-Sharp Pencil. Demand for this simple and durable instrument was immense. To facilitate greater production, Hayakawa first adopted an assembly line and later moved to a larger factory.

Following the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, Tokuji restarted business in Osaka, where he saw a future in the field of radio. In April 1925, he and his associates made history as they succeeded in assembling Japan's very first crystal radio.

During World War II, though, Hayakawa and his company were forced to produce devices for the military. Renamed Hayakawa Electrical Industries in 1942, the company emerged from the war damaged but not destroyed.

Sharp developed the R-10, Japan's first microwave oven in 1961. The following year, Sharp became the first company to mass produce microwave ovens.

In 1962, Sharp expanded outside of Japan and established Sharp Electronics Corporation in the United States—the company's first overseas sales base—and in 1979 it set up the Sharp Manufacturing Company of America to create a manufacturing base in the U.S.

Tokuji Hayakawa retired from the day-to-day operations of his company in 1970, assuming the title of chairman. He was replaced as president by Akira Saeki, a former executive director.

Saeki oversaw an important reorganization of the company intended to establish a new corporate identity and unify product development efforts. On January 1, 1970, the company changed its name from Hayakawa Electric Co., Ltd. to Sharp Corporation.
History of Sharp corporation

History of Hitachi

Electrical engineer Namihei Odaira (1874–1951) founded Hitachi in 1910 in Ibaraki Prefecture. Namihei Odaira operating an electrical repair shop at a copper mine northeast of Tokyo, when he began to experiment with his own designs, and that same year he manufactured the first domestically produced 4-kilowatt (5 hp) induction motor, initially developed for use in copper mining. His employer soon became his first, and--for a few years--only customer.

The company was originally an internal joint venture of Prairie Guardian Mining Company in Hitachi, Ibaraki Prefecture. In 1918, the headquarters of Hitachi Company was moved to Tokyo. Odaira incorporated his company in 1920 and named it for the town of Hitachi, where he had made his first sale.

Through the acquisition of other companies, Hitachi became the nation's largest manufacturer of pumps, blowers, and other mechanical equipment.

The company completed their first transistorized electronic computer in 1959. Their computer division has been used to support their other facilities, e.g., making the computer controls for their Japanese bullet train system. During the 1960s Hitachi developed Japan's first on-line computer system, and emerged as the world's largest producer of analog computers, which are used in scientific research to compile complex statistical data.

Hitachi went public in 1949. Hitachi America, Ltd. was established in 1959. In 1989 Hitachi developed what was, at the time, the world’s fastest supercomputer based on superconductive technologies.
History of Hitachi

Business history of Epson printer

Epson is part of the Seiko Group, a worldwide conglomerate descended from a clock and watch trading company founded by Kintaro Hattori in 1881. It is a large multinational company that manufactures printers, scanners, multifunction printers, large format printers, cartridge, cameras, LCDs, chips, watches, and clocks, among other products.

Epson printers trace their ancestor back to the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, when Seiko designed a device for timing athletic events. The company’s legendary engineer, Susumu Aizawa invented a quartz clock that also printed a record of the time.

After the Olympics, the printing device was initially marketed by Shinshu Seiki, a subsidiary of Suwa Seikosha, as a miniature printer mechanist, the EP-101, which help pave the way for development of pocket sized calculators and smaller, more compact cash registers.

In 1975, Epson America, Inc was formed with US headquarters in Long Beach, California. It entered the US armlet to supply original equipment manufacturer (OEM) components and peripherals to the computer and electronics market.

Four years later, as the personal computer market grew, a need developed for a competitively priced desktop printer for some consumers.

At that time, Epson introduced the MX-80. This successful and widely distributed printer became for many the de facto industry standard for serial impact dot matrix printers. In 2000, Epson introduced its first pigmented-ink printers: the Epson Stylus Pro 7500, 9500, Stylus Photo P2000 printers.
Business history of Epson printer

Seiko Corporation

The founder of the Hattori watch empire, Kintarō Hattori, began his career by opening up his own timepiece shop in 1881. The first company originally called K. Hattori & Co. However, it was not until 1924 that his first brand Seiko watches came on the market.

Hattori started making his own timepieces in 1892 by building a small, experimental production facility. The next year he geared up and built a true factory in Honjo Yanagishima and named the organization Seiko.

The Hattori Tokei Ten (((Timepiece Store) became a full-fledged kabushiki kaisha in 1917. In 1937, the Hattori family established another company call Dai Ni Seiko and build new head office and factory in Kamedo area of Tokyo and taking over all of Seiko’s watch production responsibilities.

By 1938, Seiko was producing more than a million watches a year. In terms of production volume, Seiko overtook its Swiss rival as early as 1949, and its production was more than double Omega’s from 1953.

In 1959, Seiko launched the first self-winding watches, which became the top-end watch after the war, and went on to mass produce it; the production volume of self-winding watches manufactured by the company Suwa Seiko - one of the two watch companies of the Seiko group soared from 430,000 pieces in 1961 to nearly 4.3 million in 1970.

In 1969, Seiko would debut the first quartz movement watch that would change the way consumers viewed wristwatches. They were more accurate than a mechanical watch, and cheaper.
Seiko Corporation

Samsung Company

Samsung started its business during the period of Japanese occupation. In 1936 Lee Byung –chul, a college dropout, the son of a wealthy Korean landowning family and the founder of Samsung opened a rice mill and a small transportation company at Masan on the southeastern coast of the Korean Peninsula. The company grew as a regional exporter of food products and textiles.

When a war broke out between China and Japan, Lee was forced to move his business to Taegu in northeastern Korea, hometown of the political in the military regimes.

He established the Samsung General Store exporting dried fruits, dried seafood and general merchandise to Manchuria in northeast mainland China, which at that time was also a Japanese colony.

Lee expanded the business with a sugar-refining company, a wool-textile subsidiary, and a couple of insurance business.

In 1969, Samsung Electronics Company was established. In the 1970s, Samsung particularly strengthened its electronics and semiconductor business. The founding of Samsung Electronics highlighted the group’s participation in state led growth, international technology transfer and trade.

A Samsung washing machine became a runaway seller after ads portrayed a young wife pleasing her husband with clean laundry. The message was that even in Korea’s patriarchal society, a woman could control her man by using a Samsung products.

When Samsung, in 2004, was ranked as the world’s 21st most valuable brand, it was acknowledgement of its global presence.
Samsung Company

History of Subaru car

Fuji Heavy Industries was one with high technology antecedents. The company can trace its origins back to the second decade of the 20th century, when the company was founded as an aeronautical research laboratory.

Airplane manufacturer Nakajima Hikoki increased production of military airplane during the outbreak of war in Manchuria in 1931 and World War II. It soon became the largest airplane manufacturer in Japan.

With the end of World War II, Nakajima Hikoki was dissolved. Some of its former employees established Fuji Industries which began producing electrical parts and small motors.

Active in the Japanese space programme, the company’s technological expertise was used to design and build the Lunar Lander FTB (Flying Test Bed) for the Japanese Space Agency.

The company launched its first motor car in 1958, which was a mini car with a 360 engine. Subaru 360 a compact car and the production expanded rapidly after 1960.

The Subaru sold nearly 250,000 units of the 360 in its 12 years production run.

Then in May 1966, the company launched a new model, the FF-1, the first mass –produced front wheel drive vehicle in Japan. By 1968 the company was producing 100,000 vehicles annually with exports representing 73 percent of that.

The word Subaru means ‘to gather together.’ The five stars on the logo today represent the five companies uniting to form Fuji Heavy Industries. 

The technological developments continued with launch of the first all-wheel drive vehicle in 1980, a design which has since been the basis for all Subaru drive systems.
History of Subaru car

History of Mazda

Mazda’s true beginning can be traced to 1920 when the Toyo Cork Kyogo Company was founded by Jujiro Matsuda.

As the name suggests the Hiroshima-based from initially concerned itself with cork products, but in the following year, Matsuda saw the need for heavy industrial equipment and he decided to move into the manufacture of machinery.

Matsuda was born in August 1875, and despite being brought up in the fishing trade, developed and early interest in metalworking.

After various other enterprises, Matsuda eventually decided to move into the supply of cork, as the First World War had cut off Japan’s; supply of soft wood from Europe.

In July 1927, the business was renamed the Toyo Kogyo Co Ltd, which roughly translates as the Orient Industry Company. In 1984, it adopted the name Mazda Motor Corp.

Production began in 1931 in a brand-new factory built on a former salt farm, just outside of downtown Hiroshima. The truck was called the Type-DA but when a catchier name was needed, it was christened the Mazda-go.

In 1967, Mazda Motor Company became the world’s first carmaker to manufacture cars with three types of engines, the regular piston engine, a diesel engine and first newly developed Wankel rotary engine.

In the 1970s, Mazda linked up with Ford to help both automobile makers. Mazda has supplied axles and other automotive products to Ford Motors Co.

Mazda has always kept a fairly low profile, with little advertising or promotion and despite obvious talent in its design capability the brand had nearly faded into oblivion by the time it was acquired in 1996 by Ford.
History of Mazda

Toshiba in history

Toshiba dates back to 1904 but only became a comprehensive manufacturer of electric goods following a merger carried out in 1939 under the military campaign to consolidate and rationalize production.

Specialized firms Tokyo Denki (founded in 1890) and Shibaura Seisaku-sho (founded in 1875) joined forces in the formation of the company. The original name was Tokyo Shibaura Electric KK. It was officially changed to Toshiba Corporation in 1978.

Toshiba’s superior management techniques, borrowed from GE during the inter-war period, made it the largest supplier of electrical equipment to the armed forces.

The company made significant investments in information, communication and semiconductor technology in the early 1980’s.

Among the products it developed and produced in the course of its history were incandescent lamps (1890), white goods (including electric refrigerators, 1930), fluorescent lamps (1940), nuclear-powered turbine generators (1963) and transmitting devices for use in satellite transmission (1963).

Toshiba was the first firm to set up an independent electronics research laboratory; while other firms reorganized and expanded their R & D laboratories.

In the end of March 2004, its employees numbered 161,000 globally, with 120,000 of these employed in Japan.
Toshiba in history

Shiseido of Japan

Shiseido is a large global corporation known for its lines of cosmetics, skin care products and fragrances. 

Shiseido was founded in 1872 as a pharmaceuticals retailer, turning to cosmetics in 1897. It started as a family business drugstore. The aim of its founder, Fukuhara Arinobu, was to promote the new values and culture of Western pharmacology in a country still dominated by Chinese medicine.

Fukuhara Arinobu, who started his working life in the dispensary of a navy hospital, opened his drugstore at the corner of a newly built brick commercial arcade in Ginza, the fashion district of Tokyo and called it Fukuhara Shiseido.

He was succeeded by Fukuhara Shinzo, who had studied pharmacology at Columbia University and later spent much time in Europe. Shinzo took over the company presidency in 1915. He established Shiseido as a limited partnership in 1921, and subsequently, a joint stock company in 1927.

Shinzo recognized the potential of developing Shiseido’s cosmetics business. By 1915, cosmetics had replaced pharmaceuticals as the core product of the company.

Shinzo introduced Western aesthetic values to Japan through his cosmetics company and paved the way for Japanese women to dream of Western beauty and glamour. He streamlined the firm’s advertising and window displays in the manner of Western Modernist art and photography.

The Shiseido Design Department began in 1916, and the Shiseido style it developed was modern, combining elements of art nouveau and art deco with traditional Japanese art.

Shiseido launched itself into the medium of television in 1958 by becoming the sole sponsor of a television musical show targeted at women aged 18 to 29, which became a major hit.

In 1988, Shiseido acquired Zotos, US based company. The acquisition of Zotos gives it a major presence in professional hair markets around the world.
Shiseido of Japan