
The Commercial Zen of Muji - davidbarker
http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/the-commercial-zen-of-muji
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seanmcdirmid
I really love shopping at Muji (we have a few in the Beijing area); the
products are simple, high quality, and relatively affordable (more expensive
than Target and IKEA, but cheaper than a good department store). As stated in
the article, their aesthetics are strictly earthy, they avoid wild colors,
which works well for home goods, I think.

Things to look for at Muji if one moves into your town:

Linens (sheets, pillows, blanket covers) and towels are pretty soft.

Silverware (the spoons are awesome, I've never seen anything so well
balanced).

Cleaning tools. Finding a decent broom in Beijing is really hard since no one
cleans their own house...so Muji it is (the broom is small but has an
articulate joint, can accept multiple extensions).

Pens. I really don't get this one, even the standard pens I buy in the states
don't seem to write as smoothly, and of course in China there aren't any
better options.

Snacks.

~~~
greggman
High quality? They sell furniture made from cardboard. Spill anything on it
and it's destroyed immediately. Pens? Seriously? There pens are no better and
arguably worse than just about any pens I'v used. I bought some filing boxes
from Muji, they fell apart after a very short use. They also sell mostly
tasteless food.

Muji to me is the ultimate scam. They make very crappy products but their
color scheme and presentation make it appear nice and people eat it up. I used
to be fooled by it myself.

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lotso
Almost every illustrator, designer, or artist I know really enjoy using their
pens. YMMV. Also not sure what furniture you are referring to, but they have a
lot made from solid wood.
[https://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?Sec=19](https://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?Sec=19)

~~~
mattkevan
Yeah, their .5mm pens are fantastic. I've used them for so long that my
handwriting goes weird when I use a different make.

They produce a lovely black line and the ink is quick drying, which for a
lefty is vital. I make a special journey every few months to stock up.

The notebooks are good too, though I haven't forgiven them for discontinuing
their A5 spiral bound sketchbook years ago, which was perfect. If I had
realised it was going away, I'd have gone round every branch in London and
bought them all up.

~~~
koralatov
_... If I had realised it was going away, I 'd have gone round every branch in
London and bought them all up._

I feel exactly the same way about their now-discontinued passport notebook. If
I'd realised it was in danger of extinction, I'd have bulk-bought every one I
could get my hands on.

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paulsutter
Muji trivia: the name in kanji is 無印良品. The four characters mean "no label
fine goods". Just in case you wondered why there are no labels.

~~~
vinceyuan
I thought it's 母鸡. Just joking :D

~~~
vinceyuan
(母鸡, hen in Chinese, pronounced as "Mu Ji")

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quxbar
Reading this as an openly insufferable Muji fanatic (did anyone else see
Kazuko Koike at the pre-opening event at the 5th avenue store? it was great!)
this was written by a closeted Muji fanatic. I approve. Hopefully they won't
dilute their formula by expanding, but really I'd be happy if they just
launched the full Japanese line in NYC and SF. And I want to tour some of
those Muji homes. Yes, that's how bad I have it.

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golergka
Sounds a lot like Uniqlo. Wonder if this normcore approach gets as popular in
other areas as well.

~~~
karaokeyoga
Uniqlo is strictly clothing. Muji has close to a department-store range of
items (smaller selection outside Japan).

~~~
golergka
I meant in approach, this one seems like Uniqlo of department stores. Will we
see "Uniqlo of X" in other areas as well?

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Lambent_Cactus
The Muji store locator amusingly lists the two Toronto locations as being in
the US:
[http://www.muji.com/storelocator/?c=us&lang=EN&header=gl](http://www.muji.com/storelocator/?c=us&lang=EN&header=gl)

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ksec
Sometimes I wonder if they are really that good. They are comparatively
expensive in my opinion. Especially their furniture

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davidgerard
Get a Muji multitool. I have one next to me at all times. A ridiculously
useful object.

