"No Secrets, Just Openness"—The Integrity of the Kuroneko Yamato Museum

Corporate museums occupy a buffer zone straddling both the academic realm of "museums" and the business realm of "corporations." They are organizations that collaborate extensively with various corporate departments responsible for their operation, such as public relations, branding, advertising, and human resources. In this series, PR professionals will introduce various museums operated by corporations, exploring their roles, functions, and potential.

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Most companies have some history they'd rather forget—their so-called "dark history." The Yamato Group History Museum: Kuroneko Yamato Museum, established by Yamato Holdings to commemorate its 100th anniversary, openly displays this history without hiding it. Visitors are moved by its sincerity and courage, becoming true fans. This article introduces the example of the Kuroneko Yamato Museum, which demonstrates a humble stance of learning from history—including failures—both internally and externally. We will examine how it is utilized as a platform for internal branding and fan creation.

Research and Text: Hiromi Tateno (PR Consulting Dentsu Inc.)

Established to commemorate the 100th anniversary of its founding

What comes to mind when you hear "Yamato Transport"? The distinctive trucks you've likely seen around town. The uniforms with their green base and striking yellow accents. The term "Takkyubin," trademarked yet now so familiar it feels like a generic name. And the black cat. It's not hard to imagine. That's how deeply Yamato Transport has integrated into people's daily lives. However, the path to this point was far from smooth sailing. The "Yamato Group History Museum Kuroneko Yamato Museum" (hereafter, Kuroneko Yamato Museum) traces the history of the Yamato Group.

Established to commemorate the Yamato Group's 100th anniversary on November 29, 2019, the Kuroneko Yamato Museum is located in Minato Ward, Tokyo, about a 10-minute walk from Shinagawa Station. Its floor space of approximately 2,500 square meters displays over 450 exhibits and photographs, tracing the 100-year journey of the Yamato Group since its founding in 1919. Since its opening in July 2020, the museum has welcomed a cumulative total of approximately 20,000 visitors (as of July 31, 2022). The average daily visitor count on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays is about 200 people (average from April to July 2022). Admission is free.

An Exchange Space with the Theme of "Connecting"

The Yamato Konan Building, which houses the Kuroneko Yamato Museum, is a 10-story structure. Floors 7 to 10 contain offices for Yamato Group employees and the Yamato Group Research Institute. The museum occupies the 6th floor and the outer perimeter slope extending downward from it. The 1st to 5th floors house Takkyubin delivery depots, while the roadways above and below the museum's main route slope are truck access lanes. This unique feature, built into the Yamato Konan Building as an exchange space with customers under the theme of "connecting," showcases its distinctive design.

Entering the museum on the 6th floor, the first exhibit is a circular theater featuring a large, approximately 14-meter-wide screen. Here, every 15 minutes, an animated film depicting the 100-year story of the Yamato Group and a family is screened, providing an accessible introduction to the journey through the group's century-long history that visitors will experience. Beyond this, the exhibition is divided into four major areas, arranged chronologically: "1919– The Founding Era," "1928– The Yamato Mail and Business Diversification Era," "1971– The Takkyubin Era," and "2000– The New Value Creation Era." Visitors descend a ramp from the 6th floor, progressing toward the present day.

Display of uniforms conveying the founding principles

The first area, "1919– The Founding Era," displays the early days of the Yamato Group alongside the evolution of Ginza, its founding location. Founder Yasuomi Ogura purchased four trucks—still an expensive investment at the time—during the transition from ox-drawn carts to automobiles. He established "Yamato Transport," Japan's first truck-based freight transport company. After much trial and error, the company secured a merchandise delivery contract with Mitsukoshi Department Store (now Mitsukoshi), enabling it to solidify its business foundation within about four years of founding. Success followed in new ventures like moving services and wedding luggage transport.

Replicas of the uniforms and caps worn during the founding era are displayed in this area. Though uncommon at the time, they were adopted based on the belief that drivers were the face of the company in the transportation industry. Even today, Yamato Transport's uniforms symbolize trust and dignity. This display effectively conveys the enduring philosophy from the founding era to visitors.

According to Miki Shiratori, Director of the Kuroneko Yamato Museum, the museum's location within a building housing Yamato Group facilities allows it to function as internal branding by conveying the founding principles. "Many visiting employees have shared that reflecting on the history helped them reaffirm the company's principles," she stated. "I believe this contributes to a heightened sense of belonging."

The Birth of the "Cat Mark"

The second area covers "1928– The Era of Yamato Express and Business Diversification." This section traces the history from the launch of "Yamato Express"—considered Japan's first scheduled route service—to just before the start of the "Takkyubin" home delivery service in 1971.

In 1927, Yasuomi Ogura observed this system during an inspection tour of London and brought it back to Japan to launch Yamato Express. Unlike the traditional chartered transport where one vehicle carried goods for a single shipper, this system combined shipments from multiple shippers onto a single vehicle. By 1935, the network had expanded throughout the Kanto region. Post-war, the company continued growing by undertaking related tasks for the GHQ. Subsequently, it ventured into new businesses like art transportation and railway freight transport, giving birth to numerous ventures that continue today.

Another iconic symbol born during this era for the Yamato Group is the familiar "Cat Mark." This mark represents the careful handling of packages, symbolized by a mother cat carrying her kittens. This area actually shares the origin story: the design was inspired by a drawing by an employee's daughter. Notably, this Cat Mark underwent its first design change on April 1, 2021. Furthermore, the "Advance Mark" was newly established as a symbol for businesses challenging to realize new value provision.

The Meaning of Exhibiting the Company's Own "Dark History"

The final 1960s section of this area represents a rock-bottom era for Daiwa Transport. Having pioneered diversification, Daiwa Transport clung to its successful Kanto-region business area, relying on Japan National Railways' high-speed freight trains for long-distance transport instead of trucks. Later, as expressways were developed and vehicle performance improved, long-distance transport shifted from rail to truck. By then, shippers were already using first-mover carriers, leaving Yamato Transport late to enter long-distance truck transport. Consequently, it was highlighted as an outdated company in the book "Dangerous Companies" by business scholar Professor Tami Urabe of Kobe University and actually faced a management crisis.

Reflecting this rock-bottom era, the exhibition space for this period has a distinctly different atmosphere from the rest of the display. An entire wall is painted black, and negative phrases representing Yamato Transport at the time—such as "Dangerous Company" and "Clearly Behind the Curve"—hang down from the ceiling.

Mr. Shiratori explains this was intentionally planned and created to intuitively express the looming shadow over Yamato Transport. "We placed items representing the company's glory days on the wall. Conversely, items related to Yamato Transport are not affixed to the wall but scattered on the floor. This display was designed to convey the era when dark clouds hung over Yamato Transport."

In the third area, "1971– The Takkyubin Era," Masao Ogura succeeded Yasuomi Ogura, who was undergoing medical treatment, as the second president. Tasked with rebuilding the company, Masuo Ogura noticed the lack of easy ways for individuals to send packages to other individuals and decided to focus the business model solely on individuals. However, the management team strongly opposed this decision. A visually striking exhibit in this area clearly depicts this event.

Why would a company deliberately exhibit something negative for itself in its own corporate museum? Here too, internal branding is likely key. While some exhibits, like those in the first area, aim to boost employee belonging, others, like those in this area, foster awareness to avoid repeating the same mistakes and cultivate a challenging mindset essential for innovation.

Indeed, Mr. Shiratori stated, "It was a challenging period, but it was also when one of our innovations was born. Omitting it was simply unthinkable." Takkyubin finally launched after gaining union understanding. It expanded its network by partnering with rice shops and other retailers as handling stores. Furthermore, the introduction of services like Cool Takkyubin, which expanded the range of items that could be transported, garnered significant support and led to its widespread adoption. This is how Takkyubin became a widely used delivery service.

Moving further ahead, there is a Takkyubin Experience Corner where visitors can take photos wearing sales driver uniforms and experience loading packages. Particularly impactful is the display of an actual walk-through vehicle that was once in use. Visitors can enter the vehicle to see its interior and experience the safety features designed for secure cargo transport. This exhibit is hugely popular with children, helping cultivate future fans. It clearly demonstrates the museum's design focus on engaging diverse visitors, including various stakeholders. According to Mr. Shiratori, visits from elementary school field trips and university students are also increasing.

A device for contemplating the future together with visitors

The final area is "2000– The Era of Creating New Value." Here, it showcases new forms of logistics responding to diversifying needs, such as the open-type parcel locker "PUDO Station," which has rapidly increased its installation locations in recent years. This area also features the Future Creation Lounge, a corner where visitors can imagine future lifestyles and express them through drawings. This exhibit not only illustrates the Yamato Group's future vision of pursuing "transportation entrepreneurship" rather than just "transportation services," but also functions as a device to help visitors, including stakeholders, personalize the future the Yamato Group is creating.

Internal branding spreads

The museum concludes with a journey through the Yamato Group's 100-year history. The exhibits and their presentation convey a strong impression of a corporate museum meticulously crafted with internal branding in mind. Mr. Shiratori stated, "When considering what legacy we wanted to leave for our 100th anniversary, employee education was the first thing that came to mind. I believe there is much to learn from our history. We began creating this museum hoping our employees would see these aspects."

What's fascinating, however, is how this open internal branding has radiated outward to stakeholders beyond employees and even the general public, contributing to the creation of external fans. Indeed, visitor surveys reportedly show an overwhelming number of positive comments like "I've become an even bigger fan of Yamato than before" and "I will continue using Yamato." This sincere design, which candidly displays even the company's lowest points, may be what's generating so many fans. I, too, have become one of those fans.

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[Editor's Note] (From the Web Dentsu Inc. Editorial Department)

I've read the numerous books by the second president, Masao Ogura, many times over. They aren't written in a difficult style. The prose is simple enough for elementary and junior high school students to understand. Yet, the content is full of eye-opening insights.

When we hear "innovation," we often imagine something wildly unconventional or eccentric. Yet, Masuo's ideas are endlessly kind to people and society, and profoundly rational. He would look out from a hotel in Manhattan, New York, and ponder which blocks to place vehicles on and how to arrange them for the most efficient deliveries. His drive to act on these insights is remarkable. He patiently lobbied the government. He negotiated with car manufacturers to create vehicles unlike any before.

Yamato Transport's business and services are imbued with "deep affection." Every single employee embodies this care in their work. They say the simple words "Thank you, as always" from customers are their greatest motivation. Truly, one can only bow in respect.