10 Lessons You Can Learn From Don Quijote’s Bargain King

If Don Quijote doesn’t ring a bell, that’s because this famous Japanese discount store is not named Don Quijote in Singapore but Don Don Donki instead.

Reason being this: There’s already a restaurant at Dempsey Road with the same name.

It opened its first store earlier this month, on 1 December in Orchard Central mall basement. Have you visited the 24-hour store?

I was part of the grand opening and damn, it was packed like an MRT train but it has quite a number of out-of-the-world items like… curry toothpaste. Go for a walk if you haven’t!

But before that, behind this massive brand which holds over 300 stores in Japan, Hawaii and the United States, let’s learn 10 lessons from Founder and Chairman of Don Quijote, Mr Takao Yasuda.

1. Identify the problem

Mr Yasuda, retired and relocated to Singapore with his wife in 2015 and was shocked to see such steep prices for items that cost only a dollar in Japan.

The 68-year-old said during an interview with The Straits Times, “I was surprised to see how expensive things were in Singapore – what is one dollar in Japan is sometimes two or three dollars in Singapore.”

2. Find a solution

Once he identified the problem of price disparity, he acted upon it by finding a solution – bringing Don Quijote over to Singapore.

“In Japan, I’m known as the king of discounts so even though I was retired, I felt there was an opportunity to bring Don Quijote to Singapore, given the high price differences between the two countries,” he adds.

3. Make it happen

While the idea sparked in 2015, Mr Yasuda made it happen within 2 years.

The high shelves amidst tightly packed aisles, huge and flashy hand-drawn signs to round-the-clock opening hours and variety of inventory did not happen by coincidence. These are retail strategies that Mr Yasuda came across through experience.

4. Don’t be restricted by your field of study

Mr Yasuda did not graduate from business school despite his current venture. He has a law degree from Keio University in Tokyo in 1973. In fact, he spent most of his college years playing mahjong and had little interest in his studies.

“I felt I did not have any specialized skills or strengths – what I thought I would be best at was selling things,” Mr Yasuda says.

5. Find something you excel in and go for it

With his passion in selling things, the then 29-year-old started his first general merchandise store called Thieves Market in 1978 using $70,000 he saved from working part-time jobs in the real-estate industry.

He would go directly to manufacturers and warehouses to search for cheap items to buy and resell, anything from electronics to groceries, in his 70 sq m store.

6. Open your eyes to possible lessons while at it

His first endeavour was the one that laid the groundwork for opening his first Don Quijote store in Fuchu, Tokyo in 1989.

For example, in his attempt to present a variety of merchandise in his tiny store, it led him to compressed displays and large point-of-purchase signs, like the ones we see at Don Don Donki.

Another instance which saw him getting queries from passers-by who thought the store was open late into the night while he was doing restocking of items alone, prompted Mr. Yasuda to see the benefit of having late-night shopping hours.

“My first store taught me a lot about how to purchase items – many things I thought were cheap ended up not being very economical once I put in my own markup. In other instances, customers were just plainly not interested. I learnt what items sell well, how to negotiate with sellers and how to make the store exciting for customers.”

7. Micromanaging not an option

If you’ve seen bosses that love to control every single part, no matter how small the aspect… Mr Yasuda is not any of the aforementioned.

As his stores expanded across Tokyo, Mr Yasuda placed his trust in his young store chiefs and staff with the selection, buying and even pricing of merchandise.

He believed that since his ground staff have the most interaction with customers in stores, they would have a better idea on what people like or dislike. This high degree of autonomy for his staff continues to this day.

(Share this with your boss who micromanages. Disclaimer: You’re responsible for whatever happens after that.)

8. Customer-first attitude

Running a business is never smooth-sailing and Mr. Yasuda had his fair share of the pie.

Back in 2003, the chain started connecting shoppers to pharmacists located in remote areas via videophone as they could not find enough certified pharmacists who were willing to work late-night hours.

This ran into problems with the Japanese health authorities as the law required the physical presence of certified pharmacists on the premises.

They eventually backed down but insisted that they would still give away drugs if shoppers had communicated with pharmacists over videophone in the case of an emergency.

Reason being this: The sick still need medicine when pharmacies are closed, right?

Thus, when the authorities blocked this initiative as well, there was public outrage. But thankfully after a couple of months, the Japanese regulators changed the law to allow for late-night drug sales via remote pharmacists.

9. Run your own race

Mr Yasuda is not threatened by his ‘competitors’ like the well-known Japanese discount store, Daiso and the 24-hour shopping paradise, Mustafa Centre.

This is his take on the matter:

“I think we all offer something different – in our stores, we have perishables, delicatessens and even alcohol that is all designed or made in Japan. I respect the other brands, but I do not feel like they are my direct competitors – we all have our own niches.”

10. Take care of yourself

Apart from his expansion plans into Southeast Asia and Europe (if he gets the opportunity), Mr Yasuda’s life is not all about the business.

He reveals that he hopes to hand back the reins to his younger employees in a few years and focus on his passions, which include boxing, reading and diving.

The kind of 68-year-old I want to be if I live to see the world till that age.

I’ll leave you with the wise words of Mr Yasuda:

“I want to open a store wherever there are people who appreciate good quality products and good discounts. One should always be on the lookout for new challenges and opportunities – I believe that is the only way a company can continue to grow and succeed.”

As the year comes to a close, open your eyes and heart for new challenges and seize those opportunities when they come by.

Worry less, do more.

Since you’re here, why not watch a video about a guy who lodged a Police report here in Singapore because he was friendzoned? Seriously. Here, watch it and do remember to share it (and also subscribe to Goody Feed YouTube channel)!

This article was first published on goodyfeed.com

Read Also

• Don Don Donki Displayed Adult Toys & Netizens Get Triggered, Leading it to Disappear within Two Days
• Wah, The Opening of Don Don Donki is Like Justin Bieber is in S’pore
• 10 Facts About the New Don Don Donki in Orchard Central That’ll Make You Visit It This Weekend

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Featured image: Straits Times