The Japanese multinational Canon has been able to overcome a world war, several technological crises and incessant digital disruptions ready to take any company that rests on its laurels. Created in 1937, it has a name of Buddhist origin and perhaps for this reason it does not stop seeking harmony with the environment. Ninety years later, it bills close to 30,000 million euros a year and is not only a leader in cameras, but also in printers, software, artificial intelligence, medical diagnostic devices or machines to manufacture a highly valued commodity, microchips. Its CEO in Spain and Portugal, Javier Tabernero, feels optimistic about the new technological challenges.
Why Kodak went under and Canon didn't?
Canon is the only company in the world that has been in the top 5 for annual patents for more than 35 years, with nearly 3,000 this year. It is difficult to find an equal company in terms of innovation. 8% of the company's sales are invested in that.
It doesn't have to be easy to survive so much transformation
Canon has adapted to so many transformations because it is always committed to what makes the world better. Sustainability is today one of the great transformations, in a broad sense: environmental, economic and social. In everything we do is the kyosei spirit. It is mentioned in many meetings. When there is a choice between alternatives, the kyosei spirit is chosen.
What is the kyosei?
Live and work together for a better world. It is another of the keys to why Canon is where it is. There is a lot of scientific interest. The purpose of the company is shared by the 180,000 employees.
Japanese taken global
The company is very global. We have innovation and manufacturing centers spread all over the world. In Europe, we manufacture in Germany and the Netherlands, with innovation centers in Scotland and France.
How does photography evolve in the era of smartphones and social networks?
There is a huge transformation of society in which the image has more and more importance. This means that our focus is on accompanying these new needs and the new higher quality standards. It takes shape in areas such as digital photography, with new sensors and more demanding pixels. Night photography, the demand for higher quality in the world of sports or augmented reality in the world of training require an increasingly sophisticated product in terms of innovation, speed and format. It affects the corporate world, but also gamers, influencers or online sales, in which the sensation of image must have more and more quality.
But the traditional camera has been abandoned
There are two very curious and counterintuitive tendencies. We think that the world of smartphones has eaten up a huge part of traditional cameras, but the reality is that the market and the number of cameras, including smartphones, have multiplied six times in less than ten years. Now more photographs are taken than ever by more people and with more devices and that means that there are more photographers. The photo and video quality has a limit on a smartphone because it does not allow a certain number of pixels at a certain speed, since that causes additional heat.
To the point of buying a traditional camera?
The general user is also demanding more and more level. The trend that we see is that some take the step to the traditional camera with the technological advances incorporated. Long ago an influencer, a gamer or anyone who published something was worth a smartphone and not now. Now they want a good camera for photography and video.
Is there no fear then?
We are very optimistic. Faced with the transformation that could scare us by losing a part of the market, what has really happened is that the total market has multiplied by six. Now many users are coming back to us who join the world of professional technology. If one in 200 makes the leap to a more sophisticated video, our market will double. The opportunities are enormous.
Where are the cameras going now?
With 5G, the bandwidths and latencies open up the possibility of making high-quality videos in real time. That opens a huge number of doors for us. We have optics, sensors, and microprocessors, and these technologies are now closer than ever. 5G will cause a huge evolution in microprocessors.
Has Canon had problems with the chips?
The shock of the pandemic, with the radical change in demand and the difficulties in supply, together with the highly changing demand mix, have generated difficulties in logistics, supply and components from which none of us have been spared. In the case of Canon, we are lucky to make machines that make microprocessors. 15% of our turnover is from this market segment. We have announced 300 million investment to expand capacity.
How is the diversification of the group?
It is somewhat vertical. We are an industrial hardware company that now also makes software and that in recent years has bought video management, documentation or artificial intelligence companies. With the software we are growing, for example, in diagnostic imaging or in services.
How is the mix?
Half of what we do is printing. Advanced software services for digital information management account for 5% and grow to 40% in the case of Spain. The photo and video business is 20%, compared to 15% for the medical part and another 15% for the microprocessor industry.
How is the market in Spain?
We are very proud of some differential things. There is enormous support from customers in circular economy. It is the country in the world with the highest sales of remanufactured printing machines. 85% of the parts come from previous machines. Each of them saves around a ton of CO₂.
And the economic activity in Spain?
We are optimistic globally and in Spain. We have broken record sales and grown at double digits in 2022 globally, and in Spain we are also growing and we plan to grow additionally this year. The figures for the last few months are being very positive, although we do not comment specifically by country.
How is employment in Spain?
We grow up in some environments, while in others there is a generational change. We did over 30 hires last year. I am very optimistic for our 1,019 employees in the Iberian Peninsula, 124 of them in Portugal and another 895 in Spain. We are generating opportunities in the system with partners, associates and companies.
