As it turns 100, Panasonic changes course once more in tightening market

OSAKA – With a track record of overcoming past crises by adapting to changing business environments, major electronics maker Panasonic Corp. marked its 100th anniversary last Wednesday. The company was launched by the late Konosuke Matsushita, a legendary corporate manager, together with his wife and his brother-in-law, Toshio Iue, who later founded Sanyo Electric Co., now a Panasonic unit. Panasonic, which in 2008 changed its name from Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., has grown to be a giant corporate group with over 270,000 employees. "We've continued business while adapting to different times," said Akio Tanii, Panasonic's fourth president, who took the helm for seven years from 1986. The company's story began on March 7, 1918, when Konosuke Matsushita established Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing Works at his home in Osaka.