Tokyo Tours from CScout on BBC Fast:Track

Written by: Michael Keferl on July 2, 2009 at 7:06 pm | In DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION, MARKETING IDEAS, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS | 1 Comment

Earlier this month we had the pleasure of spending the day with Rajan Datar and the crew of the BBC World business/travel show fast:track during their visit to Tokyo with Richard Branson.

Since the show expressed an interest in our Tokyo Trend Tours, a service we’ve been doing here since 2002, we planned a full day of locations and meetings that give a well-rounded view of what we do. We do tours and market immersions for professionals and globe-trotters alike, this time with a focus on a few of our favorites: The KDDI Designing Studio, Beams CULTuART, HP France, and Toppan. The idea was to show the power of mobile culture, fashion, and where they converge in the retail space.

It was also nice to find out that our friend Danny Choo was going to be featured in the same segment, which I believe we had once before on Attack of the Show. Funny how these things work out.

Many thanks to the BBC for a successful day, though I think I’m going to change my last name to “Keferi” since it seems to be the default misspelling/mispronunciation every time I do television!

Check out the video here on Yahoo. If you’re interested in inspiring yourself or your team with some time in Tokyo, from street-level trends, to nightlife, to boardrooms, feel free to contact us anytime.

Tags: Mobile, Press coverage, Retail
Category: DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION, MARKETING IDEAS, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS
Other categories: No categories

Net-based Supermarkets on the Rise

Written by: Rebecca Milner on July 2, 2009 at 7:06 pm | In DIGITAL LIFE | No Comments

According to a study conducted by Yano Research, the commodity home delivery market rose 4% between 2007 and 2008 reaching a worth of over 1.5 trillion yen (about USD15.6 billion). Moreover, the value of “net super” orders (groceries ordered over the internet) reached 23 billion yen in the same year—1.7 times the value of the previous year. The growing elderly population and increasing number households where both partners work are cited as reasons for presumed market growth.

While convenience is obviously key, a number of customers concerned with food safety are using the internet to order food directly from organic and pesticide free foodstuff producers. Orders of this nature (following recent scares about tainted food from China) rose an impressive 12.6%. Yano anticipates that the general commodity delivery market will rise to 1.8 trillion yen (about USD18.8 billion) by 2013, of which 46.8 billion yen (about USD488 million) will be organic foodstuffs.

While most major national grocery store chains have “net super” components, other service providers are rising to the occasion. Once such example is the fashionable Kunitachi Farm. Originally a restaurant in suburban Tokyo that sources ingredients from nearby farms, the brand has expanded to include a net store on Rakuten, Japan’s enormous, all-encompassing net mall. Shoppers to the site can see pictures and profiles of the farmers who bring the food to the table, adding a new element to the food preparation process.

While some may lament that solitary shopping online means that neighbors will no longer meet and interact at local markets, a few web services actually have a community element built in. A popular example is the Co-op supermarket chain online Pal System that allows neighbors to form community purchasing groups, saving money on bulk purchases and receiving free shipping. To date, over a million shoppers around the country are enrolled in the Pal System.

Trend Potential
Online grocery shopping rises to the occasion, meeting the needs of consumers valuing not only convenience but, increasingly, food safety. Meanwhile key sites show how a community element can be included, demonstrating that net shopping need not necessarily be anti-social.

Tags: FMCG, Retail
Category: DIGITAL LIFE
Other categories: MARKETING IDEAS, LIFESTYLE / FASHION, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS

Uchiage Hanabi Fireworks Projector from Sega Toys

Written by: Michael Keferl on July 2, 2009 at 12:55 pm | In PRODUCT INNOVATIONS | No Comments

Sega Toys will soon be coming out with another stylish projector for the home, though instead of the universe this time they’ll be focusing on some other shooting stars. The Uchiage Hanabi (product page) uses five moving lenses that project animated images of exploding fireworks onto the walls and ceiling.

The projector also allows users to create their own images by drawing onto special film for projection, and then shoot fireworks around it in celebration.

What’s also interesting is the detail that they went to, even creating the rocket blasting through the sky before exploding onto the wall.

via Gizmodo Japan and Impress

Tags: gadgets, Lifestyle, Sega Toys
Category: PRODUCT INNOVATIONS
Other categories: MARKETING IDEAS, DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION

Marc Jacobs QR Code from SET Japan

Written by: Michael Keferl on June 30, 2009 at 9:15 pm | In DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION | No Comments

Creative QR code innovators SET Japan, fresh off of their buzzworthy Louis Vuitton / Murakami QR code promotion, have now released a new edition for Marc Jacobs.

You can only access the new Marc Jacobs mobile site from a Japanese phone after scanning the code, but the code itself is worth it on its own. Quite amazing how nicely they can be designed while still remaining incredibly functional.

Tags: Marketing, Mobile, QR Codes
Category: DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION
Other categories: MARKETING IDEAS, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS

Retro Paper Speakers from Princeton

Written by: Michael Keferl on June 30, 2009 at 7:38 pm | In DIGITAL LIFE | No Comments

Gadget maker Princeton has just come out with some nifty DIY Paper Speaker sets that look like retro audio players, but plug into your modern player or PC to become your unassuming, space-saving speakers.

Inside the paper boomboxes and record players are a tiny 3W amp and 1W speaker that, if anything like the Yorozu Audio Sound Revolution paper speaker we’ve played with before, should actually have some decent sound. It’s quite amazing how well sound vibrates through paper to become quite full.

Princeton is also doing a speaker-crowdsourcing contest for creative types to make their own papercraft speakers, so if you have any ideas that you want mass-produced, now’s the time to break out the scissors and crayons!

Tags: Audio, gadgets, Papercraft
Category: DIGITAL LIFE
Other categories: MARKETING IDEAS, LIFESTYLE / FASHION, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS