In our family council meetings, we have a rule: If there is a Sony, there will be no discussion!
Our love affair with Sony began on December 31st 2003. We finally decided that our Solitaire Delta 10 had served us well for long. We had enough of blisters from tuning since there were only eight channels. After the budget was fixed, we headed to Vasanth. In the shop, the Sonys were placed near the entrance. After that it was LG, Samsung, Onida and others. From the moment, we entered the shop, we could see that the picture in the Sony was much better than all the other televisions (Thanks to Trinitron!).
We watched other customers making their choices. The emphasis seemed to be on the sound and the Onida KY Thunder (which came with a special bass unit on the top) was the cynosure of all eyes. The Sony was of course beyond our budget. What should we do? We reasoned that we were there for a TV which translated to a Visual experience. If we wanted good sound, we could always go for a hi-fi later. The manager of the shop told my Dad that the absence of “thunder” does not mean that Sony TVs were technologically inferior (Sony did later given in to competition and added a bass unit to their Wega range). Sony audio systems were known for their class. We settled for a Sony. My Dad went back to the bank and got some more money. And that was how our first Sony Wega landed at our house.
After reading ‘iCon:Steve Jobs‘, I have started on ‘Made in Japan: Akio Morita and Sony’. The book tells of the story of Akio Morita and Sony. The starting chapters of the book deals with his life during the War and the subsequent American Occupation. Then begins the story of Sony. Mr. Morita deals with Sony’s philosophy, their struggles in the Japanese market and then their foray into other markets. There is also a personal touch to his story.
Mr. Morita then starts with his (and Sony’s) view on management. What amazed me most was the emphasis on long term relationship between the employees and the employer. New joiness during the induction program were told that the company expected them to spend at least 30 or 40 years in Sony! All the decisions that they took factored in the fact that they couldn’t fire or hire at random (a big difference from the American style)!!
Sony lays a great emphasis on quality and class. Their products will always be second to none. I never remember seeing a Sony ad in the paper which had offers of exchange or discount. There was also never a Sony ad which touted their PMPO values to mislead customers. The book has given me the insight into all these practices. Sony has come up with good products and sometimes their marketing or production has failed them! Classic example is the PS3!!
I am still reading the book and I am yet to finish it. I recommend the book to anyone who is planning to take up management. And also to future entrepreneurs too.
Coming back to our Sony loyalty, the three mobile phones in my house are all SE K750i. All future upgrades will be in the SE family. I have started dreaming of a Viao (or a UMPC!). I also think that people who settle for a Sony are people who will wait for some more time or save a little more or travel an extra mile to get the best in class! If there is a Sony, there will not be a second thought!
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