Toyota's Unique Approach to Understanding American Customers
Forty years ago, Toyota was a rising star in the automotive industry, but it faced challenges in capturing the global market. The company's financial reports showed a 25% drop in profits by the end of 1987, primarily due to the strong yen affecting export margins. However, Toyota's resilience and adaptability shone through, especially in its efforts to cater to diverse customer needs worldwide.
In the United States, Toyota's Calty Design Research studio played a pivotal role in bridging the cultural gap. Established in 1973, Calty's early days were marked by a unique challenge: Japanese employees struggled to comprehend the scale of American consumers. Calty's proposals, designed for the narrow roads of Japan, seemed impractical to the American market.
To illustrate the size difference, Calty's team brought soda cans, but it wasn't enough to convey the point effectively. In 1986, they devised a brilliant strategy. They transported a meticulously crafted American dining room set to Japan, complete with a large wooden table, six chairs, and elegant place settings, all under a chandelier. The walls featured wide windows overlooking suburban landscapes, adorned with curtains of appropriate length.
This immersive experience was a breakthrough. It helped Toyota's Japanese executives grasp the everyday lives of American consumers, influencing vehicle design decisions. American customers, generally larger than their Japanese counterparts, required more spacious interiors and larger seats. Toyota's products evolved to meet these needs, ultimately leading to their market dominance in the following decade.
Toyota's ambition knew no bounds. Akio Toyoda, then 73, expressed his vision of reaching 10% of global car sales to The New York Times in 1986. Little did he know, he would live to see his company surpass General Motors as the world's largest carmaker in 2007, with Toyoda passing away at the remarkable age of 100 in 2013.
The dining room demo remains a well-guarded secret within Toyota. A Calty representative revealed that it was only shared in a limited-edition coffee table book, printed to commemorate 50 years in business. This book, published in 2023, never made it to the public market, but it unveiled never-before-seen sports car concepts, including an alternate design for the Mk IV Supra. The question remains: what other hidden treasures are hidden in Toyota's archives?
