Zenrosai, an ICMIF member in Japan, has recently rebranded itself as “Kokumin Kyosai co-op”. The organisation made the change on 1 June 2019 and says that the new brand name was developed in order to become a friendly and approachable organisation to many more people in Japan.
Zenrosai, a consumer cooperative established in September 1957, has expanded its business in the past 60 years. “This rebranding effort is aimed to encourage more people to join us by conveying the value of our activities and services again. The new name clearly signifies that our organization is a cooperative providing Kokumin, which means “all citizens”, with Kyosai which is translated as “cooperative insurance”, Zenrosai said.
Kokumin Kyosai co-op says that it is committed to providing its members with more of the coverage that they need and which is suitable for their livelihoods and ensuring the stable lives of those who come together in the cooperative.
While the current circumstances surrounding Japan are changing dramatically with difficult issues such as a low birth rate and an aging population as well as major natural disasters, Kokumin Kyosai co-op has pledged to continue its contribution to people and society through its insurance services and with its philosophy of “Towards a Safe and Affluent Society with Mutual Help.”
Kokumin Kyosai co-op will soon celebrate the organisation’s 130th General Assembly on 27th August 2019 and ICMIF has sent a letter of support to all those attending the meeting. In the letter ICMIF CEO Shaun Tarbuck expressed congratulations and support for the rebranding on behalf of the Federation saying: “We applaud the decision to create this new brand name based on your most popular product, short term life insurance “Kokumin Kyosai”, and we believe this will be successful in raising public awareness of the organisation in Japan”.
The official English name of the organisation has changed to “National Federation of Workers and Consumers Kyosai Cooperatives”.
At the 2019 ICMIF Biennial Conference in Auckland, New Zealand, Koh Tominaga, Managing Director of Kokumin Kyosai co-op, shared more about the organisation’s rebrand in a presentation during a session on Seeing through the eyes of the customer, examining the opportunities for cooperatives/mutuals to strengthen their relationships with their member-customers, and manage the balance between providing customer convenience through technology and service excellence that comes with the cooperative/mutual business model.
