National Socket – Matsushita Electric 1935 ; Wikimedia commons
By the mid-1930s, Japan’s emphasis on rapid industrialization brought electric power to 90% of urban and rural areas (although urban areas in the USA achieved similar results, only 10% of rural Americans had electricity in 1935).
In an effort to achieve a living standard comparable to the West, Japanese power and appliance companies developed innovative products that were promoted as enhancing health and beauty.
In the late 1930s, however, the Japanese government banned the production of new home appliances to conserve vital resources needed for the war effort in China.