On November 27th, a talk show between Paolo Pininfarina and Muneaki Masuda was held at T-SITE Bookstore in Daikanyama, Tokyo. The topic of discussion was how to share and disseminate Pininfarina's design philosophy.

Masuda: What I wanted to communicate with Daikanyama T-SITE Bookstore was for the "premier age" to enjoy life. I focused on creating a space that would personally appeal to people in their 60s, who currently make up the largest portion of Japan's population. I extracted several themes from various aspects of daily life, such as travel, food, and health, and created a space that I could use.

There were two unexpected things about opening Daikanyama T-SITE Bookstore. The first was that I didn't expect so many people to come. I saw many people in their 30s and 40s, as well as families pushing strollers. This suggests that the culture and lifestyle proposed for people in their 60s was also appealing to younger generations. Another thing is that the restaurant "Anjin" (where the talk took place) exudes a sense of intellectual creativity. I sense that the visitors are interested in new things and things of cultural value. Japan is recognized worldwide as a design city, and I wanted to create a space that visualizes that. I was surprised that it turned out better than I imagined. The conversation also touched on anecdotes about Paolo Pininfarina's grandfather and father, and the history of Italian design studios known as "carrozzerias." The event attendees also posed questions to both of them about the car business and design, making for a rich and engaging discussion. The two concluded the talk show with the following words: Paolo: One word my father often used is "noi," meaning "we." When explaining design, he would say, "Noi design is..." Communicating and sharing knowledge about elegance and materials within a team or company fosters art, technology, innovation, craftsmanship, and more. Design is born from the culture that these things weave together. Masuda: At first, I couldn't put into words what I wanted to express at Daikanyama T-Site, but this time I realized that the word "elegance" is very close to that feeling. And that design is, after all, about "people." I want to create a Japanese culture that is on par with Italy. Profile Paolo Pininfarina Born in Turin, Italy in 1958. CEO of Pininfarina, the world-famous design house representing Made in Italy. After graduating from the Polytechnic University of Turin, he gained experience at Cadillac in the United States and Honda in Japan, and in 1987 became CEO of Pininfarina Extra. He led product design projects for global companies such as the Olympic cauldron and torch for the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics, as well as Bovet, Coca-Cola, Motorola, and Samsung, expanding his market share beyond car design. In 2008, he was appointed CEO of Pininfarina. He is active in a wide range of fields from industry to architecture, and is expanding his business scope.

Muneaki Masuda
Born in 1951 in Hirakata, Osaka Prefecture. He is President and CEO of Culture Convenience Club Co., Ltd., which operates TSUTAYA and the T-Card. In 1983, he founded Tsutaya Bookstore (now TSUTAYA Hirakata Ekimae Main Store). In 1985, he established Culture Convenience Club (CCC) Co., Ltd. He is currently busy running a planning company that creates "culture infrastructure" including TSUTAYA and the T-Card.