Lifestyle stores are becoming increasingly popular these days with growing urbanisation. I guess they can be regarded as convenience stores as they are like one-stop shops where you can find everything from bedding to clothes to kitchenware and stationery. One of Japan’s leading lifestyle stores was officially launched at Level 5, Pavilion this morning.
Muji (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. was established in 2011 as a 100% owned subsidiary under Muji (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. With the success of opening Muji’s flagship store at ION Orchard in 2009, they started receiving enquiries from landlords in South East Asia, especially Malaysia, After several visits and market surveys, they felt that the urban lifestyle of Malaysia is ready for Muji. Muji products cater to the lifestyle of city urban dwellers. With the opening of the 1st Muji store in Malaysia, fans of Muji need no longer travel out of the country to enjoy Muji products any more.
Muji started as a private brand of The Seiyu Ltd. in December 1980 with only 40 products. Muji has grown and now offers more than 7,000 products of which more than 4,000 are available at the outlet in Pavilion which occupies 4,800 sq. ft. Muji plans to open another 5 outlets within the next 3 years.
In 1991, Muji’s 1st overseas stores opened in London and Hong Kong. Muji derives from the concept intersection of two distinct stances : no brand (mujirishi) and the value of good items (ryohin). “Muji” is simply the abbreviation of “Mujirishi Ryohin”. It is represented by four characters which means “no brand quality products”.
Muji came into being as a result of a call to return to simplicity in daily life. They provide their customers with the basic things they need in their daily lives. These items are made from quality materials with no unnecessary frills and are sold at reasonable prices. Clothes would feel good, food products would be tasty and household products would be easy to use.
This may appear to be very basic but it has been Muji’s primary goal to ensure that customers do not pay for what they cannot use – frills and extra packaging. Muji does not emphasise on trends or individuality. Muji has been developing from consumers point of view – products being simple and functional,
Their products do not carry a brand name. This is different compared to the usual marketing tactics where companies produce expensively designed and overly-packaged products. They focus their efforts on the selection and usage of materials. Through the years, Muji has developed the creation of ‘No Design’ products to discovering the value of keeping most of the products natural, highlighting the functionality and manufacturing process enhancing the values of design.
