Kōnosuke Matsushita

Kōnosuke Matsushita was born on 27 November 1894 in Wasamura, now part of Wakayama Prefecture. His father was an affluent landlord in the farming village of Wasa (part of present-day Wakayama city) and was one of the wealthiest men of his community.

Shortly after Matsushita left school, he was sent away to Osaka to become an apprentice for a Japanese barbecue restaurant. The business failed within a year, and Matsushita joined the Osaka Electric Light Company, an electrical utility company. During this period, he married Mumeno Iue, a friend of his sister. At the age of 22, he was promoted to the position of electrical inspector.

In 1917, Matsushita left Osaka Electric Light Company to establish his own company. He set up his shop in the basement of his tenement where with his wife, his brother-in-law, and several assistants, he began producing product samples. However, most of Matsushita's assistants left the company, leaving only his wife and Iue, who played a key role as a salesman and manager. The early years of the company were difficult: he once had to pawn his wife's kimono when he found himself short on money. The company faced financial difficulties and was on the verge of bankruptcy until it received an unexpected order for a thousand insulator plates for electric fans. From there, Matsushita was able to continue producing his light sockets. Matsushita's products were originally marketed under the name brand of "National" and later moved on to the more recognizable names of Panasonic, Quasar and Technics.

One of Matsushita's best products was the development of a more efficient battery-powered bicycle lamp. During the 1920s, bicycle lamps were candles or oil-burning lamps which were highly inefficient as they usually only lasted for three hours. Matsushita introduced and created an oval lamp that used a battery for power and a lightbulb for illumination. To promote the product, he personally marketed it to retail bicycle shops.