Lifestyles Ideas Management – Every Product Tells A Story
QP Mayonnaise is our family favorite mayonnaise.
We begin eating mayonnaise way back the 70s. There and then I had my first taste of this product, though I did not know the brand but recognize Kewpie trademarks. The mayonnaise had a light taste, slight smell of eggs and most important is the cholesterol free. The packaging is nice and easy to hold for use and with the nozzle pattern each squeeze looks nice on food as presentation.
Later then, whenever I am shopping with friends I never fail to recommend them for use in all types and kind of salads and sandwiches.
Mayonnaise goes well with every fried food, French fries, chicken nuggets, fish and chips, fish nuggets, fried chicken pieces. It simply tastes delicious with mayonnaise as a dip.
The French brought the seasoning used by the people of Mahon port on Minorca Island in the Mediterranean Sea to Europe. They called it mayonnaise from the name of the place where it came from. That is the origin of the word
“Mayonnaise.”
Mayonnaise first came to Japan in 1925. Toichiro Nakajima, founder of QP gave a twist to the taste he had come to know in the US and created original mayonnaise for the Japanese market. There is the story of Q P mayonnaise which continues to dominate the market with an outstanding market share of 80 percent. Now the share market could have been easily over 100% mark.
The story was told in animate form and makes it easy for fun reading, illustrations by Ryuji Fuji.
Conversation between a man and a woman.
“This mayonnaise is already one month old
Didn’t you know that mayonnaise tastes better and the taste settles after about a month?
Mayonnaise is best half a year to a year after it’s made
But once you open it, you’d better use it within a month or so. You have to keep it in a cool dark place, too (which is at the fridge side door)
Toichiro Nakajima was born in the 1883 as the first son of Juntaro Nakajima, a doctor in Nishio City, Aichi Prefecture. His mother died when he was still small and he moved to Tokyo with his stepmother and other members of the family. But he didn’t get along well with his stepmother and failed to find interest at school.
Toichiro, you won’t make it to medical school. His father told him.
I don’t care for medical studies. I’ll go to the Institute of Fisheries (University of Fishes) instead. Toichiro answered.
In the summer of 1905 Toichiro worked part-time at a hotel in Nikko, partly to practice his English.
You’ve been a great help especially with fussy guests. I really appreciate that. Why don’t you stay on and work for us at the monthly wage of ¥60? The manager told him.
Oh, thank you, sir. Toichiro replied.
It was then that he came to believe that “if you make sincere efforts, regardless of the immediate profits or losses, it will be recognized.”
But I don’t think I’m cut out to work at a hotel. Thank you for your offer anyway.” Toichiro decided.
In 1908 Toichiro joined a railway company as an engineer.
A year later he left the job and started to work at Wakana Shoten (firm) a small wholesaler of canned foods.
Here I can gain something by working hard, he thought.
We are short of workers. You go to Hokkaido at once. Then go to Kamchatka to can red salmon!
Toichiro went. Upon his return to Tokyo, Toichiro ran into Mr. Gill from whom he had known during his days at the railway company. Toichiro, now is the time to work with the Western world, not for Japan alone. Let’s work together in England! Mr. Gill requested.
In those days, the shortcut for studying abroad was to pass the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce’s examination for overseas business internship.
In 1912 he set sail for England.
This is good, what is it?
This is marmalade, sir.
I see. I’ll try to make it myself when I’m back in Japan.
While he was in London, he learned the recipe from his landlady.
He researched canned foods in London but then World War I began.
Soon I won’t be able to do anything her. I should go to the US (that is the United States of America, 1915.
The Americans eat a lot of raw vegetables with mayonnaise. Mayonnaise goes well with boiled potatoes, eggs and onions, too. It’s great. Toichiro commented.
The Americans are huge because they eat such nutritious food. Mayonnaise is made from vegetable oil, eggs and vinegar and is highly nourishing. I’ll try to make it in Japan!
Toichiro returned to Japan in 1916
Even young girls are dressed in plain kimono. Westernization still has a long way to go.
In 1918, Tochiro founded Nakajima Shoten (firm), a wholesaler of canned foods.
In the following year he founded Shokuhin Kogyo, a manufacturer of foods. He was waiting for the right time to market his mayonnaise.
Then the Great Earthquake hit in 1923.
Now women are wearing western clothes. The time has come.
The recovery from the disaster progressed at a rapid pace, and Tokyo became westernized almost overnight.
In 1925, he started to make and sell the first Japanese-made mayonnaise.
He had already registered the trademark of KEWPIE in 1917. The name was taken from a doll popular at that time at the suggestion of a senior employee at the food company where he used to work.
While American mayonnaise used whole eggs; Toichiro used egg yolk for his version to make it richer.
He also started selling marmalade under the Aohata brand.
When a postcard costs 1 sen and 5 rin, mayonnaise at 45 sen for 1 70g bottle was too expensive for ordinary people to afford. Toichiro gave sampling parties at department stores to promote sales.
KEWPIE’s ad spending was said to almost equal to its sales.
We have to promote the name of KEWPIE Mayonnaise first. Let’s do an ad campaign! Toichiro insisted.
The business went well, but the Pacific Was broke out, it became hard to obtain eggs and oil.
We can’t make mayonnaise of poor quality. Let’s stop making it altogether.
After six years of production of mayonnaise resumed in 1947, when it became a gigantic hit, other companies began to enter the market. Let reduce the price, KEWPIE reduced the cost with rationalization and automation, and repeatedly lowered the retail price.
Thus, those late comers to the market lose out to KEWPIE. We can’t beat them in either quality or pricing.
In 1957, Shokuhin Kogyo changed its name to KEWPIE CO, Ltd. Today it is known as QP Corporation.
In 1958, a container made of polyethylene tubing was developed.
The container has three to five layers with plastic in between that allows little oxygen to pass through.
Mayonnaise is made of 70% salad oil, 15% egg yolk, 10% vinegar, and 5% seasoning and spices.
Salad oil is also good for reducing cholesterol. Mayonnaise contains little salt, too.
What a wonder lifestyle ideas management that turn it into a product which is a part of our life, a container in the usual space in the fridge. I cannot go without mayonnaise.
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