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Muji: A Japanese Brand Meets the UK
Author(s) -
Sato Noriji
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
design management journal (former series)
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1948-7169
pISSN - 1045-7194
DOI - 10.1111/j.1948-7169.1999.tb00275.x
Subject(s) - quality (philosophy) , southeast asia , business , advertising , marketing , class (philosophy) , industrial organization , computer science , sociology , artificial intelligence , epistemology , philosophy , ethnology
LIKE MANY THINGS Japanese, the Muji brand is supported by a philosophy. Muji designs are chaste and functional. Materials are attractive, but borrow from an industrial palate. This is quality at a reasonable price. In Japan, this strategy appeals to the middle class. In Southeast Asia, it failed. In the UK, it attracts affluent consumers. What Noriji Sato makes clear is that being global isn't about the search for a universal solution, but about using design and other resources to build relationships that respond to the unique attributes of individual markets.