Kazunori Iwashita: Always a New Story.

2021/08/12

"Iwashita Fresh Ginger" (Iwashita no Shinshoga) is a pickled ginger product born in 1987. Named to signify a completely new type of pickled ginger, its unique flavor earned it a strong reputation, and it became a highly recognized product through TV commercials and other media. However, after peaking around 2000, sales began to decline year by year as younger generations moved away from eating pickles.

The catalyst for the V-shaped recovery was ego-searching on Twitter. It was a dialogue with our customers. Ten years ago, I happened to search and discover the voices of our customers. Every day, someone was posting positive comments about Iwashita Fresh Ginger. I was surprised to find that there were enthusiastic users even among the younger generation who use social media. Filled with gratitude, it became a habit for me to send replies of thanks. People were surprised that a casual tweet would result in a message of thanks from the president of the manufacturing company, but for the most part, they were delighted. Initially, this wasn't a marketing-driven idea like research or customer retention. I simply wanted to convey my gratitude to the customers who were voluntarily and sincerely promoting our product for free.

I felt that just saying "Like" or "Thank you" wasn't enough. I wanted to provide recipes and information for enjoying the product, and respond to requests as much as possible, so I took on various challenges. Because I prioritized giving back over profitability, it led to an extremely wide range of activities. This included publishing recipe books, holding various events, collaborating with diverse industries, hosting music contests using our commercial jingle, and creating characters. The number of restaurants that have adopted Iwashita Fresh Ginger as an ingredient in their menus has reached the hundreds.

Then there is the Iwashita Fresh Ginger Museum. I heard predictions that few people would go out of their way to visit Tochigi City for a facility dedicated to such a niche product, but I opened it thinking that if it made the people who posted on social media happy, that alone would be a success. As it turned out, it became a popular spot with 650,000 visitors over six years. It has become a hub where new stories are born every day.

People judge deliciousness comprehensively, not just with their tongues but with their brains. While you cannot easily change the taste of a long-selling product, I am always thinking about providing new stories one after another to compensate. I want our customers to feel that new excitement as a consistently fresh and delicious experience.