Exhibited food waste disposer at "Tsutaya Home Appliances +" Sales 5 times
Shima Sangyo (Kanonji City, Kagawa Prefecture), which develops waste disposal facilities, has a showroom-type store "Tsutaya Home Appliances + (Plus)" in Futakotamagawa, Tokyo, for home appliances that dry and dispose of food waste. Has been exhibiting continuously since 2019. This works effectively to raise awareness of products and services. Although it was not seen at home electronics mass retailers in the past, sales increased sharply after the exhibition, and the number of units sold increased more than five times before and after the exhibition.
Shima Sangyo exhibited the food waste disposer "Crispy Cue" for home appliances at the showroom type store "Tsutaya Home Appliances +", which led to an increase in sales volume.
Drying the swill with a crispy cue prevents spoilage and stinks, and significantly reduces the amount.
As awareness of the "SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)" increased, new home appliances that help reduce the environmental burden attracted attention and led to the selection. It's normal to think so. That's true as a result theory. However, the crispy cue before exhibiting at Tsutaya Home Appliances + was quietly placed in the corner of the shelf of the home electronics mass retailer, and was not looked at by consumers.
Even if the development background is beautiful, it does not attract attention
"The market for household food waste disposers flourished in the late 1990s. In 2000, the market gradually slumped. By 2010, the market had become almost unsavory."
Akio Fujita, Deputy Director of the Island Industry Product Development Group, which develops crispy cues, said: Nevertheless, the island industry continues to develop crispy cues because of the enthusiasm for solving social issues that I felt in my main business. The company was originally a BtoB (business-to-business) company that undertakes the development of waste treatment facilities. However, while engaging in the waste disposal business, he finds that there is a lot of waste in incineration.
"By weight, 40% is swill. The water content of swill is 80%, which is almost like burning water. To make it easier to burn, it is dried in advance. Fuel is also used here. It was extremely inefficient, "Fujita points out.
I would like to improve this situation as much as possible and reduce the environmental load. With that in mind, we developed the first "Crispy Cube" and entered the market in 2013 as a latecomer. The latest model is the crispy cue. The development story is beautiful. However, few consumers actually listened.
"The food waste disposer has a lower purchase priority than other kitchen appliances. It is not placed in a prominent position at home appliances stores, and you do not know where it is in the first place. Simply arranging it on the shelf is enough to develop it. I can't convey anything about the thoughts of others. "(Mr. Fujita)
Not sold at pop-up stores of consumer electronics mass retailers
In the past, pop-up stores (limited-time stores) for the purpose of sales promotion have been developed at home electronics mass retailers. However, the results were not good. "In the first place, few people know what the value of a waste disposal machine is. I can't explain the value correctly because the salesperson hasn't even used it. Even if I appeal only for a bargain in such a situation, Visitors don't even look at me "(Mr. Fujita). Before selling the product, it was a marketing issue for Crispy Queue to raise awareness of food waste disposers and create demand.
It was Tsutaya Home Appliances + that I noticed as a breakthrough. Tsutaya Home Appliances + is a showroom-type store whose main purpose is not to sell. It is easy for people to see because the limited number of exhibited products are lined up. Also, as with other stores that do not sell, the emphasis is on customer service. The store staff will learn about the products and services of the exhibiting companies in advance, and will convey them firmly through customer service.
Since it is not intended to be sold, visitors are less likely to be obsessed with being "buy". It is expected that people will feel free to talk to us in order to satisfy their curiosity about the products they are interested in.
One of the strengths of showroom-type stores is that they can convey the advantages of products and services and the background of their development to visitors. The more difficult it is to convey the value at first glance, the more this advantage will live. "I felt the value of having the store staff understand the product well and explaining it to the customers through customer service is included in the service menu," says Mr. Fujita. It was perfect for solving the marketing issues of Crispy Cue.
I also thought that the location of Tsutaya Home Appliances + in Futakotamagawa, Tokyo would lead to an approach to young people in their 20s and 30s.
Therefore, in 2019, we exhibited for three months. When exhibiting, we devised an exhibition method to convey the value of crispy cues. Crispy cues are difficult to demonstrate as it takes several hours to completely dry the swill. Therefore, we exhibited the actually dried swill so that it could be touched.
Shima Sangyo realized the effect of exhibiting Tsutaya Home Appliances +. Exhibiting crispy cues for 3 consecutive years from 19
In addition, the Tsutaya Home Appliances + clerk provided it as a sample so that the background of the development of the equipment and the functional value could be conveyed to the customer, and had them actually use it. At the same time, Mr. Fujita will be the instructor and hold a 1-2 hour online seminar for the clerk. He conveyed not only the value of the product itself, but also a wide range of information such as the development background and social issues that he wanted to solve.
Website visits doubled
At the beginning of considering the exhibition, sales were neglected. "First of all, in order to raise awareness and approach people who are even a little interested through the staff of Tsutaya Home Appliances +, we exhibited it as an advertisement," says Mr. Fujita. The effect was immediate. First, the number of visits to the product website has jumped 1.5 to 2 times.
It also led to the side effect of increasing sales. Tsutaya Home Appliances + also accepts consignment sales to meet the demand to take it home on the spot. "After exhibiting at Tsutaya Home Appliances +, it led to actual sales. It was an effect that could not be obtained even at home electronics mass retailers," says Mr. Fujita. It was the moment when I realized that if the value was transmitted firmly, it would create demand and lead to an increase in sales.
"By exhibiting in 2019, the degree of attention to the product has changed significantly. The number of website visits has increased significantly, and the number of units sold has increased nearly five times from the previous year," said Mr. Fujita. In response to this effect, we exhibited for 3 months in 20 years.
In 2020, Crispy Cue won the "iF Design Award 2020" and "Red Dot Design Award 2020", which are the three major design awards in the world. Received the "Good Design Award" in Japan as well. In order to convey the evaluation from such a third party, we exhibited for 6 months in 2009, which is double the exhibition period so far. "Comparing 20 and 21 years, the number of units sold has increased 1.5 times. I also feel the contribution of the effect of exhibiting at Tsutaya Home Appliances +." Mr. Fujita of Shima Sangyo evaluates the effect of exhibiting Tsutaya Home Appliances + as follows.
Aiming at young people was also successful. "Before, we were in the 50s and 60s, so we decided that there was no demand for young people. However, after exhibiting at Tsutaya Home Appliances +, there was a response from the 20s and 30s. From now on, we are in the 30s. I would also like to consider developing advertisements aimed at this, "says Mr. Fujita.
The showroom-type “non-selling store” has great value in that it can provide a deeper product experience by combining the high customer service skills of the staff and the purchasing experience of not having to buy. The gathering of emerging brands and new products is not just about the effect of attracting customers due to their rarity. The advantage of being able to convey value firmly and induce new discoveries for customers will lead to the ultimate goal of "increasing sales" for all companies.
