Konosuke Matsushita

Konosuke Matsushita founded Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing Works in Osaka in 1918 after developing an improved electrical light socket. He built the company around mass production, practical consumer products and a broad dealer network, later adopting the National and Panasonic brands.

By the personal-computer era Matsushita had become a global electronics group able to produce everything from components and televisions to complete computers. The Panasonic JR, portable PC and MSX families emerged from the manufacturing and consumer-electronics culture established under Matsushita’s leadership.