Basic Policy

Sumitomo Forestry provides proposals for ideal home building through continuous communication with information offering.

After the COVID-19 pandemic, communicating information through digital content become a mainstay. In addition to communicating information through SNS, we have released MYHOME PARK, a web content where you can view information on wooden texture, which is a feature of "Sumitomo Forestry homes", as well as information on technology, Net Zero Energy Houses (ZEH), and design ability anywhere and anytime.

In addition, we offer tour of showrooms, model homes, completed homes and structural sites where visitors can see and touch rich woody materials.

In addition, Japanese housing policy is encouraging the standardization of excellent long-term housing and Net Zero Energy Houses (ZEH) to transition to emphasis on the importance of creating high-quality stock which is easy to maintain so that each house can be valued and lived in for a long time. Sumitomo Forestry provides thorough after-sales service to ensure that every owner can sustain comfortable living in the long term. We are able to create opportunities such as consultation and inquiries through ongoing communication at owners events held in each location throughout Japan in addition to sustaining asset value through support for the comfortable living of our customers.

A Dedicated Team to Realize Ideal Home

Sumitomo Forestry has a dedicated team to realize ideal home building for customers.

The team is made up of a person in charge of sales, design, interior design, production and housing exteriors, and meets to discuss everything from the exterior appearance and room plan to the interior and housing exteriors with the customer. At the point of application, each person with expert knowledge inquiries about the requirements for the home such as the budget, family composition, lifestyle and any other areas of emphasis to help achieve the ideal home in all respects.

Model Homes/Showrooms

Sumitomo Forestry has expanded its model homes to roughly 270 sites and its showrooms to about 80 different locations. Since COVID-19 pandemic, we have developed a system that can provide guidance in line with customer requests by recommending visitors to make reservations. Some of these measures include reservations before visiting a model home and online consultations.

Model Homes

The model homes offer a wide variety of one-, two-, and three-story structures so that customers can experience the appeal of a home that meets their needs.

1. High-quality Luxurious Wooden Spaces
   Sumitomo Forestry's model homes use an abundance of famous Japanese and world-renowned precious woods for flooring materials, while walls, ceilings, and fittings are also designed with high-quality wood materials, allowing visitors to experience an overwhelmingly woody space. The wooden interior materials, which have been carefully selected and evolved by skilled craftsmen, are known as "PRIME WOOD," and provide a high-quality atmosphere that can only be experienced in the actual space.
2. Design Proposals Founded in Comfortable Living
   The strength of a structure is obviously important in a home, but a room plan, flow planning and storage plan as well as other aspects to provide comfortable lifestyles is also vital to every family living in the home. Visitors to these model homes can see the innovative room plans and ease of cleaning provided by Sumitomo Forestry with their own eyes. For example, families with children can also get a picture about raising their children there, including proposals for floor plan and children room as well as a study corner perfect to raise children. These families can also get a feel for high quality wood spaces accommodating work at home thanks to workspaces that take advantage of wood properties that help enhance concentration.
3. Environmentally Conscious Design and the Latest Equipment
   Sumitomo Forestry is revolutionizing design with the Ryouonbou design concept. This design concept aims to incorporate the soothing qualities of nature and facilitate a lifestyle which does not overly rely on air-conditioning and heating systems. Visitors can see these innovative designs firsthand at our model homes, such as a design to create airflow from the south to north of the home with wonderful light via deep eaves. Some model homes are equipped with the latest environmental equipment, such as solar power generation systems, high efficiency water heaters as well as central air-conditioning systems.

Showrooms

At Sumitomo Forestry's showroom, you can experience and check our original wood materials "PRIME WOOD" as well as each material and equipment. The showroom offers a wide variety of water-related equipment such as kitchen systems, bathrooms, and washbasins, as well as curtains, wallpaper, interior materials, furniture, and exterior components such as exterior walls and entrance doors. You can see, touch, and compare them to get a concrete idea of what your home will look like.

1. Large Exhibition of a Variety of the Latest Equipment
   We exhibit system kitchens from multiple product manufacturers. Design features from the sink tops to the color and texture of doors from different manufactures can be examined while comparing the storage space and convenience. In addition, a large number of bathrooms and washstands are also on display, allowing visitors to check out the water features while envisioning how easy it would be to perform household chores in their daily lives.
2. Total Coordination of Interiors and Exteriors
   To meet a variety of needs, a wealth of floor materials, doors and windows, furniture and more are on display together with curtains and wallpaper with a wide variety of colors and patterns. We also have brought together a broad line-up of exterior materials for entrance doors and external walls to help visitors solidify their exterior images, which can offer coordination for the entire home.
   Everyone can get a distinct individual feel with wood that varies in color and look for each tree species. Each person can experience the look and actual feel of these materials from the touch to texture which cannot be felt in catalogs or on websites.
3. Exhibition of the Housing Structure and Latest Environmental Devices
   Structure of a house is displayed in an easy-to-understand manner. The unique "BF construction method" features a main structural material that is about five times thicker than a typical pillar and is secured with strong metal, providing a high level of earthquake and wind resistance. In addition, we have the latest environmental devices on display, such as solar power generation.

Respect for and Application of Customer Feedback

Customers First Initiatives

Sumitomo Forestry has established the Customer Relations Office as a Group-wide customer consultation service. Communicating the opinions and complaints of customers, including neighboring residents, to improve each department as well as management is an important mission for the Customer Service Department in enhancing customer first actions even further. The Customer Relations Office holds periodic meetings and working groups with each business division and Group company as well as shares information on case studies and analysis results to provide high-quality products and services which will bring sensation to our customers, bringing together as specific measures. The measures then are executed throughout the Group, and the Customer Service Department regularly evaluates progress and efficacy of the measures, and undertakes reviews and corrective actions, in line with the PDCA cycle.

In addition, in order to raise employee awareness, we use our internal website to regularly disseminate to the company and Group company information on how to improve customer satisfaction that can be implemented on a daily basis and heartwarming case studies called "Your Kirari" Selection for the "Your Kirari Award" is conducted every year, and the impressions and insights of pleased customers are made public to Group employees. By having employees share their impressions with each other, they accumulate as a shared asset for the entire Group. Last year, we nominated 76 out of 223 entries and awarded the "Your Kirari Award" to 27 people based on comments submitted by Group employees.

Operation of Sumitomo Forestry Call Centers

Sumitomo Forestry established Sumitomo Forestry Call Centers that open 24 hours a day 365 days a year toll free, as a consistent, dedicated helpline (general reception) throughout Japan that allows immediate support to our customers such as an emergency response for lifelines. The telephone number is distributed on magnet cards given to home owners at delivery and shared on owner dedicated websites, in magazines and other mediums so that this helpline will be used broadly by our customers.

Presently the centers are located in Tokyo and Okinawa, and are linked together, shortening wait times for customers who call via the unified national free-dial number. Moreover, in response to the COVID-19, we moved and expanded office space to better the workplace environment for operators. We will continue to strive to improve customer satisfaction by promptly responding to customer requests and consultations.

Sumitomo Forestry Call Center Inquiry Breakdown (Trends)*

* Aggregation period after fiscal 2020 is from January to December of each year, and aggregation period in fiscal 2019 is from April to March of the following year.

Customer Surveys

At Sumitomo Forestry, in order to provide our customers with even greater satisfaction and service, we conduct questionnaires three times during when residents move into their home and the second and tenth years of moving in, and receive the opinions and impressions of the owners.

The survey questions primarily elicit responses about specifications, design, building materials, systems and fixtures, and the support service provided by the staff. The Company then statistically processes and analyzes these results, and applies any findings to product development and employee training.

We strive to improve customer satisfaction through direct customer contact gained from the comments received in these surveys, which are then shared with all of our relevant departments. Each branch collects and ranks items determined by the people in charge of sales, design, interiors, production, and housing exteriors to judge the level of customer satisfaction. Our headquarters forwards the results of these rankings to each branch every three months. Each branch then aims to improve overall customer satisfaction while doing everything in their power to revise measures accordingly based on the results.

In fiscal 2023, the satisfaction ratio in these surveys was 96.9% in the survey of new owners, and 94.5% in the survey of second-year owners. Furthermore, Sumitomo Forestry has adopted the Net Promoter Score (NPS)* advocated by the housing industry for the purpose of enhancing customer satisfaction. We will continue to provide high-quality products and services which bring sensation to our customers by further leveraging customer feedback through the NPS survey analysis.

* NPS is a new index used to measure customer loyalty (the amount of trust and affinity for the company and brand)

Communicating Information to Customers

Website Operation and Magazine Publication

Sumitomo Forestry operates its clubforest special website for owners of Sumitomo Forestry homes. As of December 2023, about 120,000 owners have become members.

Through a variety of content on the site, we provide information that is useful in helping members get more enjoyment and comfort out of their lives as homeowners. The site offers various contents such as a page where members can see photos of the construction site as its progresses, exclusive sales pages where only owners can purchase Sumitomo Forestry Home products at special discount prices and a 24-hour inquiry that accepts requests for building repairs. Functions such as disaster communication system were also put into operation. We will make every effort to further improve our convenience.

Lovely Family is a home and lifestyle magazine published twice a year. It also features details about Group company activities such as renovation and utilization of lands. About 320,000 prints were issued for each issue in fiscal 2022.