My History
Cleverly Home is a nationwide housing franchise headquartered in Japan, supporting homebuilding from Hokkaido to Okinawa. What sets our company apart is that we go beyond the conventional boundaries of a franchise model—we actively incorporate local perspectives to deliver durable, high-quality homes that reflect the voices of each community. Whenever I visit our franchise locations, I personally listen to customers’ needs and local challenges. These insights are directly applied to product development and service improvement. From seasoned business owners, we learn the wisdom accumulated over many years, while from younger successors, we gain fresh, innovative ideas. By learning and growing together, both headquarters and franchisees have built a system that allows the entire network to evolve continuously.
At the foundation of these efforts is the philosophy that has guided us since our founding: “To enrich the lives of those who live in our homes.” Our parent company, Shinshowa, was established in 1970. The founder, who had operated a supermarket in the postwar years, entered the housing business when the construction of a Nippon Steel plant in the area caused a sudden surge in housing demand. He was an inventive individual—known locally for hanging his store’s sign upside down to attract attention and introducing what we would now call self-service, always ahead of his time. His forward-thinking approach extended into the housing business as well. After his own research, he adopted the two-by-four construction method, which was uncommon in Japan at the time. Back then, home quality varied significantly depending on the carpentry skills of individual builders. The founder believed that such inconsistencies were a serious issue for customers purchasing homes. The two-by-four method, however, relies on prefabricated, factory-made components that are assembled on-site—making it less dependent on individual craftsmanship. Because of its structural rationality and earthquake resistance, the approach gained strong support from engineers and helped the business expand rapidly. This pioneering spirit—the willingness to innovate, standardize, and share quality across regions—is the DNA that lives on today in Cleverly Home’s franchise philosophy.
The Present
Our greatest pride lies in building homes that combine lasting beauty, reduced maintenance costs, and strong structural resilience to protect families from natural disasters. In most cases, exterior tiles are treated as an optional upgrade, but at Cleverly Home, they are a standard feature. Fifteen to twenty years after construction, repainting or re-coating exterior walls can cost several million yen. We believe that a housing company should enrich its customers’ lives—not seek profit from future maintenance expenses decades later. In fact, our philosophy even inspired a short film depicting the story of a father and son—where the son, whose father is a tile craftsman, secretly builds a two-generation home as a gift. The film received the Best Actor Award at the Madrid International Film Festival, a testament to how deeply our tile tradition resonates with human emotion.
Supporting these signature tiles is our original structural system, the Premium Hybrid Construction Method, which combines Japan’s traditional post-and-beam structure with the two-by-four framework. By integrating the first and second floors through an SPG structure and distributing forces via a monocoque system, our homes withstand the powerful external forces of earthquakes and typhoons. At key joints, we use high-precision HSS metal fittings to maximize structural strength while minimizing material loss. For the framework, we use European red pine, a dense and highly durable wood that grows in the cold climates of Northern Europe. Its strength is proven—this same species has supported Poland’s Wieliczka Salt Mine for centuries without decay, and even after 333 years underwater, the timbers of Sweden’s Vasa ship were still remarkably preserved.
The performance of our technology has been validated in real-world disasters. During the 2004 Chuetsu Earthquake, not a single Cleverly Home residence suffered total or partial collapse. In the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, even homes struck by a 10-meter tsunami withstood the waves and remained standing—protecting irreplaceable family photos and mementos. When a homeowner tearfully told us, “I’m truly glad I chose Cleverly Home,” we were reminded once again of the profound social mission that housing represents.
At the same time, as housing prices continue to rise, we are conducting research into guaranteeing property value over time. Specifically, we are exploring whether a model similar to a car’s residual value system could be applied to homes. In the automotive world, a buyer can set a future residual value, lower their monthly payments, and later choose to return, purchase, or upgrade the vehicle. Our idea is to establish a mechanism where Cleverly Home guarantees a property value that always exceeds the remaining mortgage balance. Although this concept is not yet feasible under current industry conditions, if realized, it would embody our company philosophy and bring real financial peace of mind to our customers. That is why we are determined to pursue it without compromise.
Within the company, we are also implementing and evolving a system we call “Collective Management.” The idea stems from a desire to create an environment where every employee can shine, contribute, and find purpose in their work. This concept also reflects my own background—I never worked in sales before becoming president. While sales results are easily quantified, some departments struggle to have their contributions recognized because their achievements are less visible. To address this, we developed a framework that clarifies each department’s and individual’s contributions within total revenue, and tracks productivity within working hours. By making contribution levels visible, we enable all employees—not just those in sales—to feel recognized, motivated, and engaged. This is what I mean by “Collective Management.”
For the Future
As Japan faces a shrinking domestic market due to population decline and aging demographics, we are looking toward international expansion. In particular, we plan to focus on Asian countries, creating housing adapted to the climate, land, and cultural context of each region.
We are also pursuing a bold new initiative: developing “space-standard housing.” By applying our tile technologies—capable of withstanding radiation and extreme temperature differences—to space environments, we aim to bring those innovations back to improve housing performance on Earth. If our technology can contribute to construction on the Moon or in outer space, we believe it can also enrich the future of human habitation itself. Our achievements, such as receiving the Double Award (Excellence and Merit) at the Japan Resilience Awards 2025 and winning the Kids Design Award for three consecutive years since 2022, reflect our unwavering commitment to research and development.
Cleverly Home’s mission begins with our founding philosophy: “to make customers’ lives richer.” Through homes that combine strength and comfort, we will continue to offer people safety, pride, and peace of mind—today and for generations to come.