Hideo Okauchi
Profile
Performance in office
Tenure
Tenure
Background
As of November 1955 he was a Director and head of the Chain Department, in charge of the nationwide chain store network. He became Managing Director in November 1960, was still Managing Director in May 1962, and had become Senior Managing Director by May 1966. He was a career employee who joined in 1929. As of November 1960 the largest shareholder was Sumitomo Trust Bank with 16.0%, followed by Asahi Mutual Life, Sumitomo Life and Nippon Fire and Marine with 3.3% each, and the founding family was not in the top ten. After stepping down as President he was Chairman as of November 1974.
Selection
He became President, succeeding Haruki Mori. The officer list for the fiscal year ended May 1966 shows Mori as President and Okauchi as Senior Managing Director, and the one for FY ended May 1970 shows Okauchi as President. Mori served about two years, and by the time of the change revenue had grown from ¥40.0 billion in FY ended November 1964 to ¥53.8 billion. In August 1965, the year before, the company had set up Shiseido Cosmetics (America), and its own sales in the U.S. had just begun. In Japan it led the cosmetics market, with an industry share above 30% as of 1968. The change appears to have followed internal seniority, promoting the Senior Managing Director.
Initiatives
In June 1968 the company set up a subsidiary in Italy, extending its sales network into Europe. In Japan, membership of the Hanatsubaki Club consumer organization exceeded 10 million, and as of 1969 the company had 82 sales companies and about 15,000 chain stores, with more than 6,000 beauty consultants working in stores. Purchase data collected in each store's member ledgers was fed into computers and used in sales. Financially, it built up retained earnings in preparation for capital liberalization and the resale price issue, and its equity ratio reached 32%. Revenue grew from ¥53.8 billion in the fiscal year ended November 1966, when he took office, to ¥171.7 billion in FY ended November 1974, when he stepped down.
Career
Career
Shiseido
| Date | Position |
|---|---|
| 1955 | Director, General Manager, Chiein Department |
| 1960 | Managing Director |
| 1966 | Senior Managing Director |
| 1966 | President |
| 1974 | Stepped down as President |
| 1974 | Chairman |