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

Yataro Iwasaki (1835-1885) of Mitsubishi

Yataro Iwasaki founded Mitsubishi in 1873. He was born on January 9, 1835, in the village of Inokuchi, near the southern coast of the island of Shikoku.

In 1867, Iwasaki was brought to work with Tosa Government’s trading office in Nagasaki. The next year he was transferred to Osaka. There he made more deals with foreign merchants exporting crops and importing weapons.

In 1870 Iwasaki took over Tosa’s debt of shipping company as his own. He renamed later in 1873 as Mitsubishi.

Mitsubishi began business with ten ships, With them the company entered the coastal trade edging out competitors by cutting edges.

The company got it first big break in 1874, when a competing shipping company refused a government request to transport munitions to Taiwan. Mitsubishi grabbed the opportunity and a year later the company received thirty ships form the government as a reward for its patriotism.

From the mid 1880s, Yataro Iwasaki began to diversify and it shift the focus of Mitsubishi’s business from shipping to heavy industry.

He began internalizing business that were complementary to shipping, and then spun off the internalized resources once they became independently capable of serviceable the main business.

When Iwasaki Yataro died, in 1885, his younger brother, Yanosuke, took over the Mitsubishi interest.

The new enterprise produced approximately 20 handmade Mitsubishi Model A passenger cars in 1917.

In 1946, the organization divided into 100 separate entities. Twelve years later Mitsubishi Trading established a division in the United States to export US goods and to import raw materials to Japan.

Yataro Iwasaki (1835-1885) of Mitsubishi

History of Mitsubishi

History of Mitsubishi
The first Mitsubishi Company was a shipping firm established by Yataro Iwasaki (1834–1885) in 1870. In 1873, its name was changed to Mitsubishi Shokai.

The company bought into coal mining in 1881 by acquiring the Takashima mine and Hashima Island in 1890, using the produce to fuel their extensive steamship fleet.

They also diversified into shipbuilding, banking, insurance, warehousing, and trade. Later diversification carried the organization into such sectors as paper, steel, glass, electrical equipment, aircraft, oil, and real estate.

During the Second World War, Mitsubishi manufactured aircraft, under the direction of Jiro Horikoshi. The Mitsubishi Zero was a primary Japanese naval fighter in World War II.

As well as building prominent fighters, Mitsubishi also built many of Japan's most famous bombers of the war, such as the G3M, the G4M, the Ki-21, and the Ki-67.

During the 1930s, Mitsubishi had also built the single-engine Ki-35.

At the end of the Second World War Japans large industrial groups were dismantled by order of the Allied powers and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries was split into three regional companies, each with an involvement in motor vehicle development.

By the beginning of the 1960s, Japans economy was gearing up: wages were rising and the idea of family motoring was taking off.

It was decided that the company should create a single operation to focus on the automotive industry and, in 1970 the Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) was formed.

In 1970, the company signed an LNG purchase and sale agreement in Brunei, marking the start of the global development of an investment-based business model transcending simple trading company activities.

Together with its over 500 group companies, Mitsubishi employs a multinational workforce of approximately 54,000 people. Mitsubishi has long been engaged in business with customers around the world in many industries, including energy, metals, machinery, chemicals, food and general merchandise.
History of Mitsubishi