Innovations by Panasonic's Founder

Super Electric Iron

It was in 1927. Along with the radio, the electric iron was becoming more popular as a leading-edge consumer product in an increasingly modern age. But irons were expensive, and affordable ones were usually of inferior quality. Our efforts to develop a better, less expensive iron started with the thought that even a fledgling teacher should be able to go to work in a neatly pressed shirt. First, we employed a more solidly built mechanism for the electric heating component which had often failed. We also designed this iron so that it could be easily repaired should it break. Mass production methods, still rare in Japan at that time, were used to reduce costs. After just three months in development, the Super Electric Iron went on sale. Irons at the time cost between 5 and 8 yen for domestically manufactured models, with imports costing as much as 15 yen. But selling at just 3.2 yen, the Super Electric Iron became a huge hit, acclaimed not only for its low price, but also for its superior quality. After numerous improvements based on customer feedback, in 1930, the iron was officially designated as a "product of excellence" by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (Currently the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry).

Founder Konosuke Matsushita tries out an electric bicycle.

In his younger days, the founder of Panasonic worked as an apprentice in a bicycle shop, and there he developed a special attachment to bicycles. After rolling out his long wished-for, first bicycle in 1952, he continued to think about what the company could do as an electric manufacturer to contribute to the progress of bicycles, and in 1980, Japan’s first electric bicycle finally went on sale. Mr. Matsushita, who was already over eighty at the time, saw that there was a future for the electric bicycle, as it was easy to ride for even an elderly person like himself. Unlike today’s power-assisted bicycles, this first electric bicycle ran on electric power alone, and required a license to operate, limiting its potential demand. But research continued, and technology accumulated over the years finally came to fruition with the advent of the power-assisted bicycle. Today, over half of the power-assisted bicycles sold in Japan are made by Panasonic.