Beautiful and Considerate Living

Japanese furniture is renowned for its focus on natural materials and innovative style. In recent decades, we have seen an influence from the Scandinavian countries and their focus on warmth and clean lines. We are now seeing this fusion across different sorts of buildings here in Japan. In your opinion, how would you define the uniqueness of Japanese contemporary interior design?

Our company’s roots trace back to our founding in 1969. At that time, the concept of modern interiors already existed in European markets. However, modern and comfortable chairs and sofas designed by renowned designers were not widely introduced to Japan.

Believing there was a market in Japan ready to embrace European modern interiors, we began importing furniture.

We opened our first store on Aoyama-Dori in TOKYO, establishing a showroom to introduce European modern interiors to the people of Japan. This approach already existed in the European market. However, it was not widespread in Japan. Our goal was to integrate the sophisticated living culture of Europe into Japanese life. Unfortunately, the fluctuation of the currency exchange and depreciation of the JPY made it a struggle for us. We wanted to introduce Japan to high-quality and well-designed interiors, but due to the high price, many people could not afford the furniture that we imported.

Later, In 1974, we acquired the distribution rights for IKEA in Japan. At the time, IKEA targeted the mid-price range, allowing us to introduce modern interiors to a broader audience. We continued to promote IKEA products in Japan until the mid-1980s, but unfortunately, our efforts were not successful. Balancing the sales of high-quality luxury furniture with IKEA’s mid-priced products proved to be challenging. Additionally, (At that time,) IKEA’s supply chain was not as reliable as it is today, and I heard that introducing products that had not yet entered the North American market to Japan was challenging.

The hardships that we experienced during our early years led to the natural transition to creating products by ourselves, with our Actus brand being established as a result of the experience we gained with foreign furniture. The concept was to manufacture high-quality, beautifully designed furniture that could be used for a long time and offered at an affordable price. The customer base was already there, so this was a good decision. The “modern interior” that we obtained from foreign countries was becoming more popular, so we decided to develop our own brand based on those concepts. It was a time of transformation for the company.

While it sounded simple, it was actually very hard to implement. When it comes to making long-lasting furniture, it does not only have to look aesthetically pleasing. It must be functional, and for long-term use, comfort and durability are also essential. They were the concepts that we tried to input into every item we introduced to our customers. It was a difficult process. However, finally, we were successful in creating our own brand.

It is very interesting to hear you mention the “culture of sitting.” It reminded me of a traditional Japanese home post-WW2 that consisted of a single room that was multifunctional. The family would sleep, eat, and entertain guests there. As part of this “culture of sitting,” you are introducing furniture that could disrupt these traditions. We know that Japan is famous for taking something Western and adding new value or reinterpreting it. Could you tell us how the intersection of the traditional Japanese home and interior design with modern European furniture is represented today?

As with fashion, people’s lifestyles change from time to time. This is also the case in the US and Europe. We are a company that pays attention to those markets to see what is happening there as new trends emerge and eventually spread to the rest of the world. We must be aware of new concepts that are emerging so we can tailor them to the Japanese modern reality. In Japan, many living spaces are not very spacious, so you must be very careful when choosing a sofa or table. The functional side of furniture became popular in the early 2000s, and the introduction of the dining sofa was one such concept. It could be used for dining and also reclined as a sofa. It was a very popular concept, and we sold many such items.

Of course, as time progresses, people’s preferences change. However, some pieces are cross-cultural and popular in both the West and Japan. One good example of this would be children’s furniture, which has highly designed. Furniture for children to use for studying became quite popular and is still a big hit today. It serves as a good example of adapting the European style to Japan. While some homes have a separate room for children to spend their time in, the idea behind our concept was to adapt children's furniture to fit the layout and style of other rooms such as dining rooms and living rooms where adults spend their time.

ACTUS Original Dinig Sofa “THYME” Series

ACTUS Original Kids Furniture “THEO” Desk , which is designed by Danish designer

One major challenge that Japanese companies face is Japan’s declining population. This is leading to not only difficulties in hiring staff but also, more pressingly, a shrinking domestic market. Many Japanese companies are being pushed to look overseas. When it comes to your company, how are you reacting to these challenges, and to what extent do you believe Japanese companies need to look to overseas markets to secure their long-term success?

We believe that Japan's declining population will not pose a significant issue for our company. It is also anticipated that individual living spaces will eventually expand, and more people will adopt lifestyles where they move between two or even three locations. When it comes to furniture, people often start with casual options like those from IKEA or MUJI. However, as their life stages and statuses change, and as they gain more experience with interiors, they tend to choose higher-quality pieces. To cater to these people, it is important to produce more added-value products, as these people want to lead a more comfortable life. Even though many social problems are arising from Japan’s declining population, we are not experiencing any negative effects on our business.

Throughout their lives, many people get married and have children. Their children then grow up and leave home, get married, and have children of their own. During these different stages of life, the scenery inside people’s homes changes. Furniture evolves based on its functionality and people's preferences. I believe that as individuals grow older, they come to appreciate high-quality products even more. This is where our company plays a valuable role by offering high-quality and beautifully designed products. Currently, our performance is strong, with many people choosing products that excel in design and quality over casual alternatives.

Is that complemented by the increased urbanization we are seeing in Japan with older people moving from the countryside to urban areas to be closer to services such as hospitals and supermarkets for example? Perhaps they might downsize to an apartment in doing so. Have you noticed a trend?

Yes, that has become a trend. As you mentioned, people are downsizing their households when their children grow up and leave their homes. They no longer require as much space as they once did. They may also want to live closer to the station or larger towns. When people move to big towns from the villages, they have better options available to them, such as higher-quality and functional furniture.

I would like the Japanese furniture industry to reach the level of the Scandinavian furniture industry. For example, in Denmark, we have established a market for vintage furniture where good products are repaired and used for a long time, and when they are no longer needed, they are passed on to the next user rather than thrown away. Also, some people run around the country in search of a particular piece of furniture, even if they pay a lot of money to get it. In many ways, it is an investment, as the person will have furniture for a long time. We started accepting trade-ins from people who want to change their furniture. Trade in old furniture from people who want to buy new furniture and use it to fund part of the next piece of furniture. The furniture is maintained and cleaned, and then passed on to the next user. This program has become quite popular in the market, and many of our customers have been trading their old furniture in.

We also recycle 100% of old furniture that can't be traded in and use some of it as materials to create new products. We refer to this system as Eco Loop, and it began in 2009. So far, it has been very successful, and we received a lot of praise for this initiative, including winning the Good Design Award in 2021 for our Environmental Management Activities. In the automobile industry, for example, where there is a circular economy, this approach is very conventional. While many other industries have adopted a circular economy, this was not the case in the furniture industry. Our company pioneered the introduction of a circular economy in the furniture retail industry, in which unwanted furniture is recycled and used as a material for new products and for the next resource, and has now achieved zero emissions at our logistics bases. This innovative initiative has received a lot of praise in Japan and is spreading within the industry.

In Japan and many countries around the world, brand-new products have always been coveted. In the consumer society that we live in, everyone wants new apartments or new cars, for example. How have your customers received your recycled products, and how do you assure them of their quality and functionality despite using recycled materials?

There is no disparity between our new products and repurposed raw materials. Unwanted furniture is sorted by material such as steel, glass, and wood, and recycled from each of them. The wood is broken down into very fine pieces of wood at a recycling center, and the building material manufacturer uses the same process as a new product to make a parchle board, and it is very difficult to see the difference. The quality remains the same, and the appearance does not change because it is used as a core material for furniture.

ACTUS Original Storage Unit “TSUNAGI” is made of recycled materials for the core.

When it comes to our initiatives in overseas countries, we have a dealer in Singapore and were opened a pop-up store in Sydney, Australia at the end of 2024. This is an exciting initiative that we are promoting in collaboration with our parent company, Kokuyo, and we are aiming for developments that are not limited to the Japanese market. Before deciding to open a pop-up store, we carefully considered how to communicate our concept and the value we provide as a lifestyle brand to the overseas market. We wanted to promote the beauty and sensitivity of our products so that every piece we make delivers the feeling of beauty that Japan offers as a country. We came up with the slogan “How we live,” as we wanted to let people know that furniture is an essential part of life here in Japan. Going forward, we want to increase our popularity with overseas customers and deliver high-quality products as a Japanese lifestyle brand.

When it comes to your pop-up store in Australia, how does your pop-up store concept work, and how do you deliver that Japanese message when talking about European or Western-based furniture?

It is quite hard to relay our concept. First of all, we use a very small, confined space, as we are trying to create a feeling of scarcity. When people visit our pop-up store, they will see that it is quite small and very Japanese. We want them to offer them a feeling of something that is both beautiful and scarce. That is the message we want to deliver through our pop-up store. “How we live” offers high-quality multifunctional products  that is compact but can be both “working” and “living”. Rather than offering a specific piece of furniture, we offer sets of different kinds of items that can create good living spaces. Even though the items are small, every piece that we make contains this feeling of Japanese luxury.

Pop Up Store “HOW WE LIVE” in Sydney, Australia 2024

You mentioned your pop-up store in Sydney and that you have operations in Singapore. Looking toward the future, do you have plans to open new stores or bring these pop-up events to other countries, and if so, what countries are you looking at for the future?

If our approach in Sydney is successful, we are looking to open a permanent store in Australia. We also see potential in Taiwan and Southeast Asia. Europe is another region that we are interested in. However, when opening pop-up stores overseas, we need reliable partners with good sales connections who can relay and relate what we do here in Japan. Going forward, we would like to find partners to help us expand overseas.

What types of partnerships are you interested in? Will it be distribution or sales partners? Or are you looking to work with other brands for design purposes?

Our ideal business partners would have to be more than just a selling company. as anyone can sell a product, but we are looking for partners who understand the market and the needs of the local customers. They must be able to meet the customer’s satisfaction level and ensure that they sell our furniture in a very friendly manner. That is the type of partner we would like to find.

Would that be like a trading company? How would you define that kind of partner?

If possible, we are looking for a company that has logistics solutions and retail stores in different areas, as each area has different kinds of opportunities. Logistics is key. Our customer service is to deliver the purchased product and follow up afterwards. We want to teach our delivery staff how to deliver furniture carefully and discreetly. Even if the customer service in the store is good, if the delivery service delivered to the customer’s home is poor, trust in the brand will be damaged. We want to provide a service that satisfies our customers, and we would like that to be combined with retail opportunities. If we could find a partner that can deliver our products accurately and has a retail chain, that would be a win-win situation for us.

We are also curious to learn about your partnerships with European companies like Poggenpohl, Poliform, Wegner, and others. It was interesting to hear that your business is benefitting from the aging population in Japan. Which furniture or lifestyle company from Europe do you believe has the best market opportunity in Japan, and why should you be their partner of choice when entering the Japanese market?

Our company has many advantages in the Japanese market. First of all, We have built a nationwide network of retail businesses. In addition, we have the know-how to procure and supply raw materials and recycled materials to suppliers in product manufacturing, and we also have design capabilities. However, the ownership situation of these potential companies from outside of Japan is very strict, They must have the same philosophy that we have and want to produce long-lasting, high-quality, and affordable products. That would be key to deciding to penetrate the Japanese market together.

This year your company is celebrating its 55^th anniversary. Please imagine that we will come back to interview you again five years from now for the 60^th anniversary of the company. What would you like to have achieved for the company by then? What are your personal goals or ambitions as president for the next five years?

As part of the Kokuyo Group, we recently held talks about our midterm strategy plan. In those talks, we have made the decision to position our company as a platform that promotes beautiful and thoughtful living.  We aim to expand our sales network, increase the reach of the Eco Loop system,  and continue to introduce beautifully functional and high-quality premium items, ensuring they are accessible to more people. And it is very important for us to share that feeling with our stakeholders and put them into action. In the upcoming years, I want to emphasize both B2B and B2C approaches, and we want to apply all of our manufacturing methods, design capabilities, and sales capabilities to meet the diversifying needs of our customers, as doing so will ensure further growth of our company.

For more information, please visit their website at: https://www.actus-interior.com/