[Part 1] Trinity, the leader in iPhone protective glass, reveals the full story of “marketing that beats big companies”

When purchasing a new smartphone, many people also purchase a film to protect the front glass of the smartphone. Among these protective films, Trinity Co., Ltd., headquartered in Niiza City, Saitama Prefecture, has a leading market share in the field of products made from high-performance glass. Trinity is a small company with 23 employees. However, his ability is high, with annual sales of 4 billion yen and pre-tax profit of 330 million yen in the fiscal year ending April 2023. Although it is a small company, it is a hidden gem.

Although it is a product that only protects the front glass of smartphones, 30 million smartphones are sold annually (in Japan in 2022). Recently, the mainstream material has changed from soft PET material to tempered glass. Due to the rise in device prices, high strength is required to protect the device itself. As a result, protective glass, which costs between 1,000 and 2,000 yen, is selling like hotcakes.

Trinity is Japan’s top company in protective glass for the iPhone series. In addition, for Android devices, the company is demonstrating its leading strength in products for famous brand devices such as Sharp’s AQUOS, Sony’s Xperia, and Google’s Pixel.

Why has Trinity been able to compete with major companies such as ELECOM in this genre? Why are they able to secure good sales space at mass retailers like Yodobashi Camera and Don Quijote? Of course, there is no doubt that they take great care in manufacturing to enhance the appeal of the products themselves, but there is also a marketing strategy unique to a compact company.

What should small startups do to win against large companies? And what not to do. Trinity’s success story is full of marketing tips.

When it first started, it was an import trading company.

The founder and president, Tetsushi Hoshikawa, wanted to be involved in the world of music, which he loved, so he got a job at a trading company that imports professional audio equipment. I worked as a product marketing manager. Hoshikawa, who used to use a Mac for music, naturally became obsessed with Apple-related products. At the time, he came across the iPod, a portable music player that was rapidly gaining ground, overwhelming its rivals, and his feelings for the Apple brand became even stronger.

However, this trading company made the business decision to close down the division that handles Apple-related products. Hoshikawa had strong sympathies with overseas manufacturers of Apple-related products that he had been importing, so he became independent in 2006 by taking over agency contracts for Apple-related product brands that his workplace had stopped handling. Founded Trinity. There were three members, including Hoshikawa, at the time of the company’s founding. They have been colleagues since their days at a trading company, and when it was first established, it was a pure import trading company that did not have its own products or brands.

Sales of products from the brand “Blue Lounge,” which he liked and wanted to continue selling in Japan, continued to grow steadily even after becoming independent. While attending exhibitions, he found what he liked and increased the number of product catalogs, and business began to stabilize. However, it is not always possible to find the product that you want.

Once I had more money to spare, I started thinking about not only purchasing and selling products that were available in the world, but also making things that I wanted. Therefore, in 2008, we started our own brand, “Simplism.”

Speaking of 2008, the iPod, which was introduced in 2001, is continuing to make great strides. In North America, CD sales were rapidly decreasing, and sales of downloaded songs from the iTunes Music Store (then known as iTunes Store) were rapidly increasing. Even in the long-closed Japanese market, music distribution began in 2006, and a music download revolution was underway.

We have developed a case for the iPod nano (2nd generation) as an accessory for Apple products, which are growing rapidly. This was the first product developed in-house. Hoshikawa looks back on it as follows.

“We were looking for good products made by other companies and purchasing and selling them, but we couldn’t find everything we wanted.So we started producing products directly that we wanted and that we thought Apple fans would want. We decided to outsource production to a Chinese company in China.

At that time, many domestic peripheral and accessory manufacturers were developing products mainly for Japanese device manufacturers, and there were only a few companies that focused on the user needs of Apple products and worked on creating original products. There weren’t many. Under these circumstances, SoftBank’s attention was drawn to the planning, development, and sale of Apple-focused accessories.

In 2008, when Japan’s first iPhone, the iPhone 3GS, was announced domestically, Hoshikawa also appeared on stage at the iPhone launch presentation held by Softbank President Masayoshi Son (then) to introduce third-party accessories. Appeared on the podium. I had the opportunity to give a presentation about polycarbonate protective cases.

I was able to get that chance because I created something that I wanted, which was suitable for the rounded iPhone 3GS. This was because the typical product-out style of manufacturing matched the early days of the iPhone.

Improve user experience with “Pita Ultra”

The next thing we focused on was the protective glass. Why did I pay attention to this place?

“Our company, which has been focusing on protective cases for smartphones, turned our attention to protective glass because I myself was dissatisfied with the soft protective films that had been available up until then. On the other hand, the tactile feel of the glass and its resistance to fingerprints greatly affect the usability of the screen.However, if the film that protects the important display surface is made of PET material, it is easily scratched and slips under your fingers. Therefore, I developed a multi-coated high-performance protective glass that uses fluorine and other materials for the glass material and is equivalent to the iPhone itself.”

The protective film is not simply made of glass. The user experience has also been improved. In order to apply the protective film properly, the glass surface must be cleaned, dust-free, and applied without introducing air. Positioning is also important, and it is extremely difficult to apply a protective film accurately on modern smartphones, where the screen frame is extremely small. Hoshikawa was particular about this.

“If you try to reapply it because it’s misaligned, the final result is often not ideal due to dust getting mixed in.Therefore, we devised a mechanism that would allow anyone to apply it neatly and easily.We incorporated this into our products. did”

We keep trying to improve it every year. Other accessory manufacturers have followed suit. However, with the current “Adhesive Pita Ultra,” you can finally attach the glass to the ideal position by simply placing the iPhone in the package box and pulling out the film multiple times according to the instructions. Currently, only Trinity has this feature. Rivals have not been able to follow suit.

Detailed product development tailored to the needs of consumers is unique to a small manufacturer, but that alone does not mean they have secured the number one market share. Hoshikawa also implemented a sophisticated market-in strategy, developing products that fit the store structure desired by retailers.

“Rather than developing products for each store, it is more efficient to sell a single product in large quantities to all stores. However, this approach would put us in a head-on collision with a major company like ELECOM, and it would become a physical battle. Therefore, we avoided a head-on battle and tried to obtain a unique position by optimizing the product for the sales floor and developing a detailed product. This method resulted in higher sales volume and enabled us to capture the top market share.”

Product development tailored to the customer demographic desired by retailers

Specifically, we have adopted a super-variety strategy, with a lineup tailored to the needs of each department at each retailer.

For example, Don Quijote is an urban mass retailer known for its surprisingly low prices. Don Quijote does not carry multiple brands of products with the same characteristics due to its compressed display. To avoid customers getting confused by having multiple similar products on display, they combine the elements that customers want and decide on the characteristics of the product they want from the planogram stage.

Trinity prepares different package designs and specifications for each customer’s anticipated needs, and by stocking all the brands of major glass manufacturers that are said to be of high quality, it satisfies all of Don Quijote’s customer needs with exclusive Donki products.

Furthermore, Trinity will propose a POP that summarizes the appeal points for each planogram, and will collaborate from the creation of the sales floor. “The package design and catchphrase are similar to those sold at Don Quijote,” says Hoshikawa. By gaining support from the sales floor, the two of them worked together to increase sales.

Each year, the company’s sales representatives take part in creating similar products and sales areas for each of the company’s seven major distribution customers, including Yodobashi Camera, Bic Camera, and Joshin Denki.

For example, Yodobashi Camera is particular about being a “Japanese brand” and proposes package designs and functionality specifically for tempered glass made by Japanese glass manufacturers.

How can we respond in detail?

The on-site employees at the dealership know the customers best. Each dealership has its own individuality, and each develops its own sales strategy. One retailer is focusing on products made in Japan in anticipation of inbound demand, while another is focusing on sales aimed at women by devising packaging designs. Sales strategies are regularly updated and sales areas are created accordingly.

Basically, it is more profitable to make large quantities of the same smartphone accessories. The larger the manufacturer, the more they want to sell the same product in large quantities. However, the fact that there are only products with the same specifications means that, from a retailer’s perspective, it is not possible to differentiate the sales floor.

Trinity succeeded in gaining a unique position in this gap.

Although the lots for each product have become smaller, the company has been able to make inroads into the sales floor by developing products that match the scenarios in which distributors would like to focus their efforts. When iPhone releases a new product, 700 to 800 other products are created based on it. The question that comes to mind is whether inventory management is difficult, but Hoshikawa explains as follows.

“In the case of a mass retailer, if you decide to hire us, we can wholesale a certain quantity to all stores at a reasonable price. We carefully replenish while monitoring sales trends, so we can keep inventory levels down. Competitors If you look at other companies’ financial statements, some of them have more than five times as much inventory as we do. Even if they have a huge variety of products, they can keep their inventory down if they do something about it.”

Hoshikawa has a “strong love for his hometown,” and has no interest in moving his company to Roppongi or other metropolitan areas. We are not thinking about going public. He also has no interest in increasing the size of the company. The company’s headquarters is located in a residential area near Shiki Station on the Tobu Tojo Line, and the company’s dedication to honest management can be said to be a contributing factor to its No. 1 ranking in iPhone protective glass.

If the story ends here, it is a modest success story of a serious company, but the story continues. Hoshikawa is aiming for the next development while making money with “Simplism”. In the second part (

Why Trinity, which makes its money by “market-in,” values ​​product development by “product-out”

), we will introduce our future strategies. (Title omitted)