Case study Nihon Paris import

Thèmes abordés

Nihon Paris import, Osaka Mr. Yoshizato Akira, Tokyo, Osaka

Résumé du document

One of your first missions consists in finding a proper distributor able to sell your products – at least some of your ranges of products – in Japan. Your boss thinks Japan could be the right country in which to export your umbrellas. Japanese people are said to have a passion for luxury products, to like perfection in everything, and to associate the French culture and moreover French products with the idea of quality.

You have visited quite a few Japanese fairs in the last few weeks, and a few weeks ago, you have met in Osaka Mr. Yoshizato Akira. He manages a company importing and distributing luxury clothings and accessories, Nihon Paris Import. He distributes them in very posh independent shops in the best districts of Tokyo, Osaka and other big Japanese cities mainly, where rather well-off customers buy their fashion.

Extraits

[...] It is a choice for the company. They make products people who deserve the which means, of course, for the ones who are ready to pay the price. The adverts for the brand, ten years ago, used to say : “Neyret-Peyronnat : an umbrella for life”. The company produces 4 different kinds of umbrellas as far as their size is concerned : unfoldable ones (very elegant but not so practical), foldable ones different sizes, normal and large), very foldable ones (which are as wide as the other ones when unwrapped but very tiny when wrapped in a bag and also very expensive) different designs can be mixed with all those sizes. [...]

[...] It consists in making umbrellas for other companies. These companies can be famous brands like Cartier, Thomas Hillfiger, Yves Saint Laurent, Kenzo or others. They can also be any industrial or services company wanting to offer company gifts to its customer. In that case, Neyret-Peyronnat can print the name of the company in small or big letters along with its logo on the umbrella, in any current colour, but the plate with the brand Neyret- Peyronnat remains. Moreover, Neyret-Peyronnat umbrellas are so resistant that they can be repaired when, in their old age, they can get broken parts. [...]

[...] You have therefore accepted to meet Mr. Yoshizato Akira in Osaka next week in order to discuss further the possibility to build up a partnership with his company for the distribution of you products. You have of course a lot of subjects to discuss with him : your want to be able to analyse the importance of his company on its market, you want to know as much as you can about the products, brands, ranges he already distributes, the shops and stores his company is currently working on, his company's price policy and promotion policy. [...]

[...] You didn't have time to go very far into details about you company and the reasons why he should work with you. You exchanged a few words. Both of you had a very good impression of the other and of the other's company. But that's what it was : an impression that still needs to be confirmed. You did not get very precise information about Nihon Paris Import, the importance of the company, the number of shops it works with, its turnover, etc. You don't even know if the Japanese distributor already imports umbrellas, and if so, of what kind. [...]

[...] The designs are exclusive : they have been created by Parisian designers for Neyret-Peyronnat only. Some designs remain constantly in their catalogue (about 20 of them) : they are called the “classics”. Others are changed regularly (about 40) : more or less a third of them are replaced every year. Neyret-Peyronnat has developed a specific technology that has been registered as a patent. It makes their umbrellas particularly resistant to very windy conditions. It does not mean their products will resist a hurricane, but while most umbrellas get broken or at least unusable in strong winds, Neyret-Peyronnat ones remain totally efficient. [...]