DO NOT COMPETE WITH RIVALS

The more successful a company is, the less it competes with its rivals on the same playing field.

you are competing on the same playing field

The other day, I received a phone call from a customer I have had a long-standing relationship with.

“Sensei, our sales have been declining since a rival restaurant opened nearby”.

When I heard those words, there was one thing that caught my attention. Is the real problem that a rival restaurant has opened?

I think it is slightly different.

If sales decline after a rival restaurant opens, it means that, from the customers’ perspective, that restaurant and your own restaurant are being compared.

To put it more harshly, you are competing on the same playing field.

YAMATO do not compete with rivals

For 50 years, I have continued to observe the noodle business around the world. Through that experience, there is one thing I have become firmly convinced of. The more successful a company is, the less it competes with its rivals on the same playing field.

In other words, from the customers’ perspective, it is a situation where they think: “There is not much difference between the two”.

When that happens, profits decline. The people on the front lines become exhausted and only companies with sufficient financial strength survive.

I believe we must not engage in this kind of competition. What matters is not defeating your rivals.

What matters is creating a reason for customers to think:
“It has to be this restaurant”

Successful companies around the world create their own playing field

When you look at successful companies around the world, none of them simply imitates its rivals.

Apple did not compete simply as a computer manufacturer or smartphone manufacturer.

By combining technology and design, it changed the experience of the people who use its products.

Starbucks did not choose to compete on the price of coffee.

Rather than simply being a place to drink coffee, it created the value of a “third place”, i.e. a place which is neither home nor workplace.

Shake Shack did not choose to compete by selling hamburgers cheaply.

Through quality, brand experience, and the atmosphere of its restaurants, it built a playing field different from fast food.

None of these companies simply ran in the same direction as their rivals

They refined the value that only they could create and built their own playing field.

The same applies to the noodle business in Japan

Marugame Seimen did not choose to engage in a simple price competition with other Udon restaurants.

It thoroughly refined the value of “freshly made, freshly boiled, freshly served” and turned it into something customers could experience right before their eyes.

Freshly made – Freshly boiled – Freshly served

Ippudo does not simply sell ramen.

It provides a value unique to Ippudo, encompassing the aesthetic vision of Mr. Narumi Kawahara (its founder), the restaurant space, customer service, cleanliness, and the brand experience.

TsuruTonTan did not stop at making Udon into merely an everyday food.

It transformed Udon into an experience, encompassing the bowls, the space, the presentation, and even the time spent enjoying the meal.

Ikkaku does not simply sell bone-in grilled chicken legs (“honetsuki-dori”).

It provides the experience of gathering with friends, talking together, eating heartily, and returning home feeling energized.

These companies did not create their products by looking at their rivals

They have built their own playing field by refining their roots and core values

Is a rival restaurant really a threat?

I do not believe that a rival restaurant itself is a threat. When a truly strong restaurant gains a rival, its own appeal becomes even more distinctive.

That is because customers are then able to compare the two. After making the comparison, a restaurant that makes customers think:

• “After all, I prefer that restaurant”
• “After all, I like the noodles at that restaurant”
• “After all, I feel comfortable with the service at that restaurant”

This becomes more prominent as the number of rivals increases. I believe this is what a true brand is.

It is not a restaurant that sells well because it has no rivals. It is a restaurant that is chosen even when there are rivals.

More than that, it is a restaurant whose differences become even more distinctive as rivals emerge. Isn’t this the kind of noodle business we should be striving for from now on?

World Noodle Culture Research Institute Seventh Theory

When studying successful companies around the world, one principle becomes apparent.

Do not compete with rivals

Rather than competing, create your own playing field. That is what management is.

When you look at your rivals, you may want to lower your prices. You may want to imitate their products. You may want to increase your advertising. You may be tempted to resort to short-term measures.

But when you look at your customers, you see something different: you begin to see what your customers truly want; you begin to see the value that your own restaurant should refine; you begin to see new markets.

What business owners should look at is not just the movements of their rivals.

It is important to look there

What is the playing field that belongs only to your restaurant?

Here, I have one question for all of you.

Suppose a new rival restaurant opens right next door tomorrow. Would you be able to explain in a single sentence why customers would still choose your restaurant? If the answer is clear, your rival is not a major threat.

However, if the answer is vague, now is the time to create a playing field that belongs only to your own restaurant.

• Is it the price?
• The taste?
• The texture?
• The customer service?
• The atmosphere?
• Your relationship with the local community?
• The owner’s philosophy?
• An experience that no other restaurant can offer?

Anything is fine

What matters is “the reason for choosing this restaurant” should be clear the customers’ perspective

The goal is not to compete, but to become so distinctive that competition makes your company stronger.

The more rivals emerge, the clearer your reasons for being chosen should become.

This is the Seventh Theory of the World Noodle Culture Research Institute.

Fujii ‘Rocky’ Kaoru