Masazumi Kushikawa, Chairman and Representative Director of Lion Corporation

Lion's role is to create habits that support people's healthy lives

Chairman and Representative Director of Lion Corporation　Masazumi Kushikawa(Masami Kikukawa)

■ Profile
After graduating from the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Tokyo in 1984, he joined Lion Corporation. As a researcher at the Applied Research Institute, he was in charge of fundamental technologies, exploring new surfactants and developing inorganic materials. He then took charge of the development of the powder detergent "Top." After serving as Director of the Fabric Care Research Institute and General Manager of the Health & Home Care Business Division, he was appointed Representative Director and President in January 2019. He will assume his current position as Representative Director, Chairman and Board of Directors in March 2023.

Lion Corporation, which started out with soap and toothpaste, has been proposing ways to create better habits since its founding in 1891. With bases not only in Japan but also overseas, primarily in Asia, the company provides products that are loved by people. We spoke to Masazumi Kushikawa, Representative Director, Chairman of the Board of Directors, about his time at university, the appeal of the company, future prospects, and a message for students.

The joy of research is having your ideas betrayed

During my student days, I dreamed of a future where I would spend my days as a researcher, facing experimental equipment in the lab, collecting experimental data and small discoveries. When conducting an experiment, you formulate a hypothesis and begin the experiment with a prediction of what will happen. Of course, there is joy when your hypothesis is correct. However, there are also times when the results differ from the hypothesis. In other words, a completely different mechanism than what you had thought was at work, causing the phenomenon. This is truly the joyous moment when your own ideas are betrayed. Sometimes other people formulate hypotheses similar to the ones you have, but this is not interesting. It is when they are different that new discoveries are made and the experience becomes more interesting. I have had the experience of being betrayed several times, thinking, "Oh, there is such a thing!", but each time it was a joyful experience.

■ Researching antiperspirant powder materials

I joined the company at age 24 and spent around 20 years in the research lab. I had the opportunity to experience a variety of jobs, but after joining the company I was assigned to the applied research lab, which wasn't directly involved with products, and within that I was in the department researching product materials. Initially, I carried out organic synthesis of surfactants, which are also used in detergents and toothpaste, and conducted research to investigate their performance, but then I switched to researching the inorganic substance silica. Silica is an oxide of silicon, a material that is also found in glass, and has a smooth texture, so I continued research and development into the possibility of using it as a powder for antiperspirants.
After that, after the material was adopted in a product and released to the world, I headed to a drugstore because I wanted to see customers putting the product I had made into their baskets. It made me very happy to see customers picking up the product and putting it in their baskets. Based on that experience, I applied and was transferred to a research lab where I was directly involved in product development.

The secret behind the special mint that supports your tooth brushing habits

Over the past 50 years, the number of elementary school students with cavities has fallen by a quarter. This is because developing tooth brushing habits has improved oral health. At the same time, the size of the toothpaste market has expanded fourfold. Our company has a social mission of improving people's health. I believe that one of our missions is to make tooth brushing fun and easy.
One example is the mint flavor used in our toothpaste. We have a small field on the first floor of our company. This is where we grow mint, the plant that creates the flavor in our toothpaste. We have been very particular about mint for a long time, and every year during the mint harvest season, our researchers travel to India or North America, where it is grown. They inspect the fields and purchase several types of mint so that they can be blended in different proportions to maintain a consistent level of flavor. Then, every year, we slightly change the blend ratio to adjust the flavor to a consistent level.
Since we use products every day, the taste and scent should not feel strange. Once you like it and it becomes a habit, you will not be able to use anything else. This applies not only to toothpaste, but also to the scent of fabric softener. Of course, people do not brush their teeth just to enjoy the taste, but it would be good if the refreshing feeling left after brushing could help them develop the habit of brushing their teeth. Also, because tooth brushing is perceived as a hassle these days, we are developing a new oral health care habit that can be easily done even during pregnancy.

■ Japan is being asked to take on challenges that put it ahead of the rest of the world

Japan's declining birthrate and aging population will continue to worsen. This may sound bleak, but as civilization advances and society becomes more prosperous, I believe it is inevitable that such situations will develop. To overcome this situation, we must take on unknown challenges that will put us ahead of the rest of the world. Even Lion is facing a major challenge: how we will develop in the future. If we can create a new model of success here, we can use that experience to apply it as a success story to other countries and companies. We currently operate in 10 countries and regions outside of Japan. Our goal is to continue taking on new challenges and be useful both at home and abroad.

■Message to students

As you move into the next stage of your life, you will enter society and face many life choices. As you move forward in your long life, there will likely be many things you worry about and research. However, in the end, you won't necessarily arrive at the right answer. I don't mean to sound negative, but it's important to think, "That's okay," even if you don't choose the right answer. The worst thing you can do is get lost on whether to go right or left, and end up not moving forward.
In my case, I arbitrarily decided on a few options for trivial reasons and moved forward, but now I have no regrets. I'm not bragging. The important thing is to think about whether to go right or left, and then make sure you decide on one and give it a try. The important thing is to keep working hard until you can say that the direction you chose was the right one. If you go right, you can't be sure what would have happened if you had gone left, as this is not an experiment or research. Make a bold choice, and be prepared to work hard until you can be satisfied that it was the right choice. I hope you will always keep this in mind and move forward on your own path in the direction you want to go.

Interview with Student Newspaper Online on November 1, 2024, Haruna Shoji, a second-year student at Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences

Musashino University, 4th year Nishiyama Ryusei / Sophia University, 3rd year Yoshikawa Minami / Toyo University, 2nd year Koshiyama Rinno / Toyo University, 3rd year Ota Fuka / Tsuda University, 2nd year Ishimatsu Karin / Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences, 2nd year Shoji Haruna