Matushita Switches to Single Brand Name

Panasonic

Matsushita Electric (Taiwan) Co., Ltd., a leading local electric-appliance manufacturers which has been marketing its products under the "National" brand name since 1962, is now consolidating its global marketing by focusing on its "Panasonic" brand name.

The move marks a major re-engineering of its operation strategy in the next few years. Over the past few years Matsushita Taiwan has been marketing its electric appliances using both National and Panasonic brand names. According to Richard M. Hong, chairman of Matsushita Taiwan, the use of a single brand name is designed to make Panasonic the No. 1 brand name in Taiwan and on the international market.

The new branding campaign is a critical link of Matsushita Japan's new global marketing strategy because the Japanese company is determined to make the Panasonic the No. 1 high quality brand on the world market, and make Taiwan its global research and development center.

Under the new operation plan, mainland China will serve as the company's international manufacturing center and production lines of Matsushita Taiwan will be gradually relocated to China. The company has set up Jian Song Electric (Xiamen) Co., Ltd. In Fujian province as its major production plant in China. Jian Song has become Matsushita's largest manufacturing center for electric motors. Currently all the electric motors used to power Matsushita's home appliances are made by Jian Song. Matsushita will keep its Japan operation as its global command center.

The new branding campaign took effect in October this year in Taiwan. As of March next year, all of Matsushita's products in Taiwan will be marketed under the Panasonic brand name in Taiwan. In Europe, the branding consolidation will begin next year. The single brand approach will help Matsushita save its worldwide marketing expenses substantially while maximizing its brand image.

The brand consolidation is a manifestation that Matsushita will further bolster its "brand values." Rather than engaging in vicious price competition, Matsushita will boost its brand value by providing better services to its customers. The new value of Matsushita products is a warranty period of three years. Previously, its warranty period was only one year. In addition to the extended warranty period, Matsushita maintains more than 100 service stations island-wide.

The new brand name emphasis will enable the company garner the championship in its sales volume of electric appliances such as air conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines, and flat panel TV sets. Matsushita Taiwan forecasts to sell 120,000 air conditioners, 160,000 flat panel CRT (cathode ray tube) TV sets, 140,000 units each of washing machines and refrigerators this year.

In digital TV product lines Matsushita Taiwan expects to sell 10,000 LCD TV sets and 1,000 plasma display TV sets. The company will generate total sales of NT$30 billion (US$857.1 million at US$1:NT$35) this year. About half of its total sales will be from exports to overseas markets.

Matsushita Taiwan hopes to boost its market share in Taiwan from the current 20% to 25% next year, according to Hong. Although Matsushita Taiwan has been using the Panasonic brand name in Taiwan for 13 years, it will spend NT$100 million (US$2.86 million at US$1:NT$35) on bolstering the name in the coming year. The advertisement campaign is aimed at solidifying the company's image as a manufacturer of more intelligent and digitized electric appliances.

The effort at brand-name consolidation marks entry into a new era for Matsushita. Top officials of the company indicate that after the branding change all of the organization's new-product launches will be synchronized throughout the world. In the past, new products were first launched in Japan, and later in other markets.

Matsushita Taiwan has recently launched 87 new electric appliance models in Taiwan, in 27 categories. These new products are distributed by more than 1,000 dealers on the island, making its products the most readily available appliances for Taiwan customers.