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The Impact of a Founder’s Legacy on Strategies of Successor Generations in the Face of Environmental Change

A Case Study of Hirose Paper Mfg Co., Ltd.

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DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51094/jxiv.1339

Keywords:

founder, legacy, strategy, identity, core technology, case study

Abstract

This study analyzes the impact of a founder’s legacy on strategic adaptations made by successor generations in response to environmental change. We describe in detail the case of Hirose Paper Mfg. Co., Ltd., which manufactures wet-laid nonwoven fabrics. The founder, Shinji Hirose, established a core technology-based strategy for his company that focused on investing in cutting-edge synthetic paper. He also established an identity for the company as being development-oriented, with a track record of beating the competition by producing a wide range of differentiated products using superior technology and emphasizing the importance of their functions. Both strategies were passed on to the successor as the founder’s legacy. Later, one of the company’s employees succeeded in spinning nanofibers and mass-producing nanofiber nonwoven fabrics on his own, leveraging the founder’s identity. In addition, the company’s current president used the changes in the business environment caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to create a new business for nonwoven nanofiber fabrics. We find the strategy of relying on core technology, a legacy from the founder, enabled the successor generation to adapt to a rapidly changing environment. In addition, the founder’s identity drove technological innovation and fostered new businesses created by the successor generation.

Conflicts of Interest Disclosure

The authors declare no conflicts of interest associated with this manuscript.

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Submitted: 2025-06-27 05:53:22 UTC

Published: 2025-07-01 00:59:18 UTC
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Economics, Business & Management

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