"Osaka Nomura Business News"It was also in 1906 that Shinnosuke initiated a development in the company which was completely original and of great significance: he established an in-house research department. He was confident that he had the right people to conduct the research, for he had been very careful to select high-quality staff. In addition, Nomura began publication of a newsletter, the Osaka Nomura Business News, a daily that was widely distributed. The newsletter contained information on the previous day's trading, analyses of particular stocks, and articles on current economics trends. It was a service which no other broker of the time had ever considered, and, especially as it was undertaken by a house as yet not counted among the majors, it attracted a great deal of attention within financial circles. Shinnosuke had demonstrated not only his foresight, his capacity to innovate and his refusal to take advantage of the ignorance of unsophisticated investors, he had also shown a flair for publicity. Throughout the history of Nomura, these themes have remained constant, providing the basis for the company's progress and success.
When the newsletter was introduced, Shinnosuke made a statement of intent which must have sounded decidedly novel to the ears of investors: "Customer profits should be considered before the firm's profits." Perhaps just as unusual, he practiced what he preached. The concept of linking the company's gains directly to those of the customer was given wide exposure in the Osaka Nomura Business News, and the findings of the company's research department were published openly. This meant that Nomura and its customers could make decisions from the same standpoint and followed logically from Shinnosuke's belief that "the customer's success is the company's success."
