Toto displays its plumbing products to Japanese consumers while paying respect to traditional patterns
of distribution.
The typical plumbing showroom is owned and operated by one of three people - wholesaler,
contractor or kitchen & bath dealer. Manufacturers? Kohler does have its Design Center, but that's one
part showroom and two parts showplace. American Standard used to operate a consumer showroom in
Manhattan, but that closed down several years ago. By and large, manufacturers seem happy to leave
this marketing chore up to others.
Halfway around the world, however, Toto Ltd. operates 66 showrooms, including one Tokyo facility
that attracts more than 6,000 consumers a month. (Such superlatives need to be kept in perspective
when discussing Japan. Keep in mind, Tokyo is home to 12 million.)