Matsushita Konosuke(1894-1989)
Panasonic founder Konosuke Matsushita was born on November 27, 1894, in Wasamura, a farming village that is now part of Wakayama City. His father was a small landowner and prominent member of the community, and Konosuke, the youngest of eight children, enjoyed a comfortable early childhood. But the family's fortunes turned when his father lost his property as a result of poor speculation on the commodities market, and the family was forced to leave their farm and move to a small house in the city. To help support the family, Konosuke was apprenticed to a hibachi (charcoal brazier) store in Osaka a few months before he was to graduate from elementary school. Still only nine years old, Konosuke said goodbye to his mother at the train station and left on the long, lonely ride to the big city.
Konosuke's career continued to advance at the Osaka Electric Light Company as he was quickly promoted to higher-paying positions, until, at the age of 22, he became an inspector - the highest post a technician could hope for. Earlier, Konosuke had tried in vain to interest his supervisor in an improved electrical socket he had designed and built in his spare time. Now, dissatisfied by his job's lack of challenge, Konosuke's thoughts returned to the socket once again. Remembering his father's advice about the advantages of being an entrepreneur, he left the security of his well-paid job on June 15, 1917, to set up his own small manufacturing company. Konosuke's savings totalled less than 100 yen, scarcely enough for basic tools and supplies - power tools were, of course, out of the question. However, undaunted by his meagre resources, he set up a shop in his tiny dirt-floored tenement with two co-workers from Osaka Electric Light Company and Mumeno's youngest brother, Toshio. Sales of the socket were poor, and by the end of 1917, Konosuke's former co-workers pulled out, leaving only Konosuke, Mumeno and Toshio. Mumeno's pawnshop register tells the story of months of hand-to-mouth survival. On the brink of bankruptcy, the company was saved by an unexpected order for a thousand insulator plates for electric fans.
Konosuke had begun developing a second-generation battery-powered bicycle lamp - changing to a square-shaped design. While trying to think of a brand name for this new lamp, he came across the English word "international" in the newspaper. Looking up the definition in the dictionary, Konosuke saw that within "international" was the word "national", meaning "of or relating to the people of a nation". This struck him as perfect for a product that he believed every household in the country would one day be using. And, in 1927, the National brand was born.
Konosuke's career continued to advance at the Osaka Electric Light Company as he was quickly promoted to higher-paying positions, until, at the age of 22, he became an inspector - the highest post a technician could hope for. Earlier, Konosuke had tried in vain to interest his supervisor in an improved electrical socket he had designed and built in his spare time. Now, dissatisfied by his job's lack of challenge, Konosuke's thoughts returned to the socket once again. Remembering his father's advice about the advantages of being an entrepreneur, he left the security of his well-paid job on June 15, 1917, to set up his own small manufacturing company. Konosuke's savings totalled less than 100 yen, scarcely enough for basic tools and supplies - power tools were, of course, out of the question. However, undaunted by his meagre resources, he set up a shop in his tiny dirt-floored tenement with two co-workers from Osaka Electric Light Company and Mumeno's youngest brother, Toshio. Sales of the socket were poor, and by the end of 1917, Konosuke's former co-workers pulled out, leaving only Konosuke, Mumeno and Toshio. Mumeno's pawnshop register tells the story of months of hand-to-mouth survival. On the brink of bankruptcy, the company was saved by an unexpected order for a thousand insulator plates for electric fans.
Konosuke had begun developing a second-generation battery-powered bicycle lamp - changing to a square-shaped design. While trying to think of a brand name for this new lamp, he came across the English word "international" in the newspaper. Looking up the definition in the dictionary, Konosuke saw that within "international" was the word "national", meaning "of or relating to the people of a nation". This struck him as perfect for a product that he believed every household in the country would one day be using. And, in 1927, the National brand was born.