Bringing Japanese homes to the US market

case study
Sector
Real Estate
Services
Market Entry

THE CHALLENGE
With their sights on the highly competitive U.S real estate market, a Japanese company came to us for primary research. Our main goal was to highlight the priorities for Americans when considering a house—and the cultural values that inform them.

THE APPROACH
In order to understand their perceptions toward both Japanese and American homes, we conducted group interviews with American respondents who’ve lived in the U.S. and Japan. By hosting these meetings in model Japanese homes, we were able to give participants a range of visual and tactile cues, leading to a more detailed dive into Japanese floor plans and housing features.

THE OUTCOME
Our research uncovered three primary values that are fundamental for American homebuyers. From this, we identified and outlined both opportunities and potential risks to exporting specific Japanese housing features.