Wacom Case Study

The appeal of the international brand of Wacom can be seen on the campus of the University of Illinois. 22HDs are in the computer labs in both the Art and Design building and in many of the engineering buildings. Many of my friends and classmates have at least one. I, myself, have two. The high demand for an obviously overpriced brand reflects the strong demand for image more than the actual product. There are an increasing number of similar products that are much more affordable. Global products like Wacom sell internationally the same exact products. “If Europe says its consumers want a product in green, let them have it. If Japan says red, let them have red. No one wants the average.” (from “Global Products” p218) That said, people are fine with average when it comes to branded products. “The lure of a universal product is a false allure” except for some kinds of products where globalization “makes excellent sense.” (from “Global Products” p218) Japanese electronics dominate globally because many general design choices

“Nike, which began as an import/export scheme of made-in-Japan running shoes and does not own any of its own factories, has become a prototype for the product-free brand. Inspired by the swoosh’s staggering success, many more traditionally run companies…are busy imitating Nike’s model, not only copying the company’s marketing approach…but also its on-the-cheap outsourced production structure.” (from “No Logo” p203) Wacom Wacom thankfully still has one factory in Japan and owns their own factories, but outsourcing work is still a problem. It becomes more difficult to guarantee the quality of products and address problems and solutions. Moreover, if Wacom is relying on cheap labor, the marketed value of their products should actually be affordable and not so outlandish. When similar products are at a much affordable range, it consolidates the claim that Wacom is merely selling their