the.world.is.flat-第32部分

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opening　a　U。S。　consulate　in　Shimoda。　This　treaty　led　to　an　explosion　of　trade　between　
Japan　and　the　United　States；　helped　open　Japan　to　the　Western　world　generally；　and　
is　widely　credited　with　triggering　the　modernization　of　the　Japanese　state；　as　the　
Japanese　realized　how　far　behind　they　were　and　rushed　to　catch　up。　And　catch　up　they　
did。　In　so　many　areas；　from　automobiles　to　consumer　electronics　to　machine　tools；　
from　the　Sony　Walkman　to　the　Lexus；　the　Japanese　learned　every　lesson　they　could　from　
Western　nations　and　then　proceeded　to　beat　us　at　our　own　game…except　one：　retailing；　
especially　discount　retailing。　Japan　could　make　those　Sonys　like　nobody　else；　but　
when　it　came　to　selling　them　at　a　discount；　well；　that　was　another　matter。　
So　almost　exactly　150　years　after　Commodore　Perry　signed　that　treaty；　another　
lesser…known　treaty　was　signed；　actually　a　business　partnership。　Call　itthe　
Seiyu…Wal…Mart　Treaty　of　2003。　Unlike　Commodore　Perry；　Wal…Mart　did　not　have　tomuscle　
its　way　into　Japan　with　warships。　Its　reputation　preceded　it；　which　is　why　it　was　
invited　in　by　Seiyu；　a　struggling　Japanese　retail　chain　desperate　to　adapt　the　
Wal…Mart　formula　in　Japan；　a　country　notorious　for　resisting　big…box　discount　stores。　
As　I　traveled　on　the　bullet　train　from　Tokyo　to　Numazu；　Japan；　site　of　the　first　

Seiyu　store　that　was　using　the　Wal…Mart　methods；　the　New　York　Times　translator　pointed　
out　that　this　store　was　located　about　one　hundred　miles　from　Shimoda　and　that　first　

U。S。　consulate。　Commodore　Perry　probably　would　have　loved　shopping　in　the　new　Seiyu　
store；　where　all　the　music　piped　in　consists　of　Western　tunes　designed　tolull　shoppers　
into　filling　their　carts；　and　where　you　can　buy　a　man's　suit…made　in　China…for　65　
and　awhite　shirt　togo　with　itfor　5。　That's　what　they　call　around　Wal…Mart　EDLP…Every　
Day　Low　Prices…and　it　was　one　of　the　first　phrases　Wal…Mart　folks　learned　to　say　in　
Japanese。　
Wal…Mart's　flattening　effects　are　fully　on　display　in　the　Seiyu　store　in　Numazu…not　
just　the　everyday　low　prices；　but　the　wide　aisles；　the　big　pallets　of　household　goods；　
the　huge　signs　displaying　the　lowest　prices　in　each　category；　and　the　Wal…Mart　
supply…chain　computer　system　so　that　store　managers　can　quickly　adjust　stock。　
I　asked　Seiyu's　CEO；　Masao　Kiuchi；　why　he　had　turned　to　Wal…Mart。　〃The　first　time　
I　knew　about　Wal…Mart　was　about　fifteen　years　ago；〃　explainedKiuchi。　〃I　went　to　Dallas　
to　see　the　Wal…Mart　stores；　and　I　thought　this　was　a　very　rational　method。　It　was　
two　things：　One　was　the　signage　showing　the　prices。　It　was　very　easy　for　us　to　
understand。〃　The　second；　he　said；　was　that　the　Japanese　thought　a　discount　store　meant　
that　you　sold　cheap　products　at　cheap　prices。　What　he　realized　from　shopping　at　
Wal…Mart；　and　seeing　everything　from　plasma　TVs　to　top…brand　pet　products；　was　that　
Wal…Mart　sold　quality　products　at　low　prices。　

〃At　the　store　in　Dallas；　I　took　pictures；　and　I　brought　those　pictures　to　my　colleagues　
in　Seiyu　and　said；　'Look；　we　have　to　see　what　Wal…Mart　is　doing　on　the　other　side　
of　the　planet'　But　showing　pictures　was　not　good　enough；　because　how　can　you　understand　
by　justlooking　at　pictures？〃　recalled　Kiuchi。　Eventually；　Kiuchi　approached　Wal…Mart；　
and　they　signed　a　partnership　on　December　31；　2003。　Wal…Mart　bought　a　piece　of　Seiyu；　
in　return；　Wal…Mart　agreed　to　teach　Seiyu　its　unique　form　of　collaboration：　global　
supply…chaining　to　bring　consumers　the　best　goods　at　the　lowest　prices。　
There　was　one　big　thing；　though；　that　Seiyu　had　to　teach　Wal…Mart；　Kiuchi　told　me：　
how　to　sell　raw　fish。　Japanese　discounters　and　department　stores　all　have　grocery　
sections；　and　they　all　carry　fish　for　very　dis141　
criminating　Japanese　consumers。　Seiyu　will　discount　fish　several　times　during　each　
day；　as　the　freshness　declines。　
〃Wal…Mart　doesn't　understand　raw　fish；〃　said　Kiuchi。　〃We　are　expecting　their　help　
with　general　merchandising。〃　
Give　Wal…Mart　time。　I　expect　that　in　the　not…too…distant　future　we　will　see　Wal…Mart　
sushi。　
Somebody　had　better　warn　the　tuna。　
Flattener　#8　
Insourcing　
What　the　Guys　in　Funny　Brown　Shorts　Are　Really　Doing　
One　of　the　most　enjoyable　things　about　researching　this　book　has　been　discovering　
all　sorts　of　things　happening　in　the　world　around　me　of　which　I　had　no　clue。　Nothing　
was　more　surprisingly　interesting　than　pulling　the　curtain　back　on　UPS；　United　Parcel　
Service。　Yes；　those　folks；　the　ones　who　wear　the　homely　brown　shorts　and　drive　those　
ugly　brown　trucks。　Turns　out　that　while　I　was　sleeping；　stodgy　old　UPS　became　a　huge　
force　flattening　the　world。　
Once　again；　it　was　one　of　my　Indian　tutors；　Nandan　Nilekani；　the　Infosys　CEO；　who　
tipped　me　off　to　this。　〃FedEx　and　UPS　should　be　one　of　your　flatteners。　They're　not　
just　delivering　packages；　they　are　doing　logistics；〃　he　told　me　on　the　phone　from　
Bangalore　one　day。　Naturally；　I　filed　the　thought　away；　making　a　note　to　check　it　
out；　without　having　any　clue　what　he　was　getting　at。　A　few　months　later　I　went　to　
China；　and　while　there　I　was　afflicted　with　jet　lag　one　night　and　was　watching　CNN　
International　to　pass　the　wee　hours　of　the　morning。　At　one　point；　a　commercial　came　
on　for　UPS；　and　its　tag　line　was　UPS's　new　slogan：　〃Your　World　Synchronized。〃　
The　thought　occurred　to　me：　That　must　be　what　Nandan　was　talking　
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about！　UPS；　I　learned；　was　not　just　delivering　packages　anymore；　it　was　synchronizing　
global　supply　chains　for　companies　large　and　small。　The　next　day　I　made　an　appointment　
to　visit　UPS　headquarters　in　Atlanta。　I　later　toured　the　UPS　Worldport　distribution　
hub　adjacent　to　the　Louisville　International　Airport；　which　at　night　is　basically　
taken　over　by　the　UPS　fleet　of　cargo　jets；　as　packages　are　flown　in　from　all　over　
the　world；　sorted；　and　flown　back　out　again　a　few　hours　later。　（The　UPS　fleet　of　270　
aircraft　is　the　eleventh　largest　airline　in　the　world。）　What　I　discovered　on　these　


visits　was　that　this　is　not　your　father's　UPS。　Yes；　UPS　still　pulls　in　most　of　its　
36　billion　in　sales　by　shipping　more　than　13。5　million　packages　a　day　from　point　
A　to　point　B。　But　behind　that　innocuous　facade；　the　company　founded　in　Seattle　in　
1907　as　a　messenger　service　has　reinvented　itself　as　a　dynamic　supply…chain　manager。　
Consider　this：　If　you　own　a　Toshiba　laptop　computer　that　is　under　warranty　and　it　
breaks　and　you　call　Toshiba　to　have　it　repaired；　Toshiba　will　tell　you　to　drop　it　
off　at　a　UPS　store　and　have　it　shipped　it　to　Toshiba；　and　it　will　get　repaired　and　
then　be　shipped　back　to　you。　But　here's　what　they　don't　tell　you：　UPS　doesn't　just　
pick　up　and　deliver　your　Toshiba　laptop。　UPS　actually　repairs　the　computer　in　its　
own　UPS…run　workshop　dedicated　to　computer　and　printer　repairs　at　its　Louisville　hub。　
I　went　to　tour　that　hub　expecting　to　see　only　packages　moving　around；　and　instead　
I　found　myself　dressed　in　a　blue　smock；　in　a　special　clean　room；　watching　UPS　employees　
replacing　motherboards　in　broken　Toshiba　laptops。　Toshiba　had　developed　an　image　
problem　several　years　ago；　with　some　customers　concluding　that　its　repair　process　
for　broken　machines　took　too　long。　So　Toshiba　came　to　UPS　and　asked　it　to　design　a　
better　system。　UPS　said；　〃Look；　instead　of　us　picking　up　the　machine　from　your　
customers；　bringing　it　to　our　hub；　then　flying　it　from　our　hub　to　your　repair　facility　
and　then　flying　it　back　to　our　hub　and　then　from　our　hub　to　your　customer's　house；　
let's　cut　out　all　the　middle　steps。　We；　UPS；　will　pick　it　up；　repair　it　ourselves；　
and　send　it　right　back　to　your　customer。〃　It　is　now　possible　to　send　your　Toshiba　
laptop　in　one　day；　get　it　repaired　the　next；　and　have　it　back　the　third　day。　The　UPS　
repairmen　and　…women　were　all　certified　by　Toshiba；　and　its　customer　complaints　went　
down　dramatically。　

packages　delivered　or　goods　repaired　quickly　anywhere　in　the　world；　you　can　act　really　
small。　
In　addition；　by　making　the　delivery　of　goods　and　services　around　the　world　
superefficient　and　superfast…and　in　huge　volumes…UPS　is　helping　to　level　customs　
barriers　and　harmonize　trade　by　getting　more　and　more　people　to　adopt　the　same　rules　
and　labels　and　tracking　systems　for　transporting　goods。　UPS　has　a　smart　label　on　all　
its　packages　so　that　package　can　be　tracked　and　traced　anywhere　in　its　network。　
Working　with　the　U。S。　Customs　Service；　UPS　designed　a　software　program　that　allows　
customs　to　say　to　UPS；　〃I　want　to　see　any　package　moving　through　your　Worldport　hub　
that　was　sent　from　Cali；　Colombia；　to　Miami　by　someone　named　Carlos。〃　Or；　〃I　want　
to　see　any　package　sent　from　Germany　to　the　United　States　by　someone　named　Osama。〃　
When　the　package　arrives　for　sorting；　the　UPS　computers　will　then　automatically　route　
that　package　to　a　customs　officer　in　the　UPS　hub。　A　computerized　arm　will　literally　
slide　it　off　the　conveyor　belt　and　dump　it　into　a　bin　for　a　closer　look。　It　makes　
the　inspection　process　more　efficient　and　does　not　interrupt　the　general　flow　of　
packages。　These　efficiencies　of　time　and　scale　save　UPS's　clients　money；　enabling　
them　to　recycle　their　capital　and　fund　more　innovation。　But　the　level　of　collaboration　
it　requires　between　UPS　and　its　clients　is　unusual。　
Plow　&　Hearth　is　a　large　national　catalog　and　Internet　retailer　specializing　in　
〃Products　for　Country　Living。〃　P&H　came　to　UPS　one　day　and　said　that　too　many　of　its　


furniture　deliveries　were　coming　to　customers　with　a　piece　broken。　Did　UPS　have　any　
ideas？　UPS　sent　its　〃package　engineers〃　over　and　conducted　a　packaging　seminar　for　
the　P&H　procurement　group。　UPS　also　provided　guidelines　for　them　to　use　in　the　
selection　of　their　suppliers。　The　objective　was　to　help　P&H　understand　that　its　
purchase　decisions　from　its　suppliers　should　be　influenced　not　only　by　the　quality　
of　the　products　being　offered　but　also　by　how　those　products　were　being　packaged　and　
delivered。　UPS　couldn't　help　its　customer　P&H　without　looking　deep　inside　itsbusiness　
and　then　into　its　suppliers'　businesses…what　boxes　and　packing　materials　they　were　
using。　That　is　insourcing。　
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Consider　the　collaboration　today　among　eBay　sellers；　UPS；　PayPal；　and　eBay　buyers。　
Say　I　o