Big in Japan
Launching BRIO in Japan, on a shoe-string budget!
Background:
Esteemed toy company BRIO was founded in Sweden 1884. Four years into Hans joining the firm, he was entrusted with a mission by the CEO: to reverse the declining market share in Japan. BRIO had lost the licensing rights for the beloved Thomas the Tank (TTT) franchise. This loss was devastating since TTT accounted for a staggering 54% of all sales in Japan back in 2002. To make matters worse, BRIO AB found itself on the brink of bankruptcy.
Problem:
While barely being able to count to ten in Japanese, Hans and family moved to Tokyo, on Jan 9, 2003. The objective was to set up a subsidiary for BRIO in Japan. As Hans had fired the long-standing Japanese distributor before, he was received in a hostile manner. Japanese clients, first referred to him as Gaijin ("foreigner" or "outsider"). But as the vibe eased up, after much tea (and sake), he became Hans-san, or even BRIO-san with most customers.
Solution:
To capture the hearts of Japanese children (and their paying parents) our strategy was to provide them with an unforgettable BRIO experience (Event Marketing). Hans implemented this:
-
Instead of going throught the traditional toy channel, Hans partnered with Japan's luxury department and design stores: Takashimaya, Isetan, Mitsukoshi and others. Thus we avoided going head-to-head with rival Thomas the Tank (of Mattel), as we also successfully positioned BRIO as a premium brand. This is turn, led to a noticeable reduction in price sensitivity compared to when selling BRIO through toy stores.
-
Secured a huge billboard to feature BRIO for two months on the outside of a Ginza toy store. 12M views, a 140% sales growth, and a clear message: "BRIO had arrived in Japan!" Instead of paying an exorbitant fee, Hans offered the store 10% off, for six months.
-
Recruited great staff (all still on today.)
-
Sales Mgr and Hans built +50 BRIO play tables, which we placed in the most prestigious shops. Organized weekly BRIO play-days for kids.
-
Shipped in vintage toys from the BRIO Museum in Sweden. This resulted in the Princess Victoria of Sweden visiting an exhibition. Every major newspaper wrote about these vintage toys that were exhibiting around Japan. Best of all, the BRIO exhibition was by retailers.
Results:
-
More than doubled BRIO sales and broke even within 2 years.
-
Positioned BRIO as a luxury product, which helped to forever cement the brand in a favourable view with the Japanese consumers.
-
Opened accounts: Toys R Us, Takashimaya, Mitsokoshi, Hakkuhinkan, and hundreds of trendy design stores.
-
Launched a BRIO Vintage Toys Tour, that department stores paid for, and media lined up to write about. Tremendous success.
Cool stuff we did...
Princess Victoria visiting BRIO Japan's Historical Toys Exhibit at Takashimaya department store (2006). 37 events were carried out in Japan. BRIO was featured as a quality Swedish toy brand, with a history of entertaining kids, including all of Sweden's Kings. Exposure and media coverage gained through these measures, helped BRIO propel itself onto a successful path.
BRIO Vintage Toys Tour:
We set up more than 50 shop in shops in the world's most expensive real-estate:
Established BRIO shop-in-shops in Japan's most prestigious areas: Ginza, Omoto-sanno, Shibuya, Ebisu etc. We penetrated luxury design stores as well as part of our "Diamond Distribution Strategy".
BRIO Japan - Diamond Distribution Strategy:
We conceived and utilized the above distribution model to position BRIO in an optimal way.
