World leadership in tape and the New York listing: becoming a global components maker (1982)

Not making world no. 1 the banner, but moving to the next pillar

The heart of this shift is that being number one in the world was never allowed to become a reason to play defence. The New York and London listings and the unification of the name worldwide were not merely fundraising or presentation; they were a declaration that a materials maker now intended to put its own brand before the world. Read together with the new magnetic-head plant built the same year to seed the next principal business, president Sono’s caution at the summit looks like groundwork laid so that a fortunate change of main business would not remain a matter of luck.

That said, no “thick trunk” to replace tape appeared quickly. It took more than another decade of trial — including the first operating loss since listing — before the turn to magnetic heads and electronic components bore fruit. Even so, the fact that a company founded on ferrite and crowned world leader in magnetic tape was voicing unease at its very peak connects directly to the later wager on batteries and to the sorting of businesses by ROIC. When to let go of being number one, and what to switch to — that this company asked itself the question from the summit is what its character consists of.