Japan, which ranks third in the world by GDP and has a unified cultural landscape, is a desirable market for foreign companies. Japan's unified language and cultural practices form a unique market where customers share comparable interests and media consumption habits, unlike fragmented regions like Europe or ASEAN. This gives international companies the chance to interact with a large audience. Entering this market is difficult, though, particularly for people who are not familiar with the traditions and customs of the area.
Companies need to hire a local specialist to help them adjust to Japan's unique business environment if they want to flourish. Kichiji Dai, a Keio University alumnus, fits this role perfectly, as he uses his in-depth knowledge of Japanese culture to advise international companies on their market entry plans.
Kichiji Dai started his profession with a great drive to produce and market goods globally. During the mid-1990s, he was still a university student in Japan and was motivated by the success of Japanese auto and camera firms such as Toyota, Honda, Nikon, and Canon, who had made great strides abroad. He joined the product planning team to develop cameras for the global market as a result of his ambition, which helped him land a job in the camera sector.
Kichiji was instrumental in spearheading product strategy and industrial planning for well-known Japanese firms when the digital camera market arose and expanded quickly in the early 2000s to show the world how strong Japan's high-tech industry is.
He worked with multinational corporations such as Apple, Google, and Facebook to predict and influence the next technology advancements. Following a prosperous career in Japan, Kichiji moved to Singapore to take on a regional position where he was in charge of marketing for the Asian market, which included Hong Kong and India. He managed the transition of the camera industry from DSLR to mirrorless models during this time in response to the increasing influence of smartphones on traditional camera sales.
By 2017, Kichiji saw that the market was saturated and declining, so he made the decision to change course. He established his own business, DOU Creations Pte Ltd, in Singapore after realizing the difficulties Japanese corporations experienced when trying to enter foreign markets, especially in ASEAN.
His new venture focuses on helping companies, especially those from Japan, navigate the complexities of entering and thriving in foreign markets, particularly in Asia, by leveraging his deep understanding of regional cultures and market demands.
“I have noticed that many Japanese people find it difficult to understand the cultural and working style differences in various Asian countries. My goal is to bridge this gap by addressing the specific needs of each industry, whether it’s food, manufacturing, or home appliances, tailoring solutions for each case”, asserts Kichiji.
Bridging Innovation & Strategy
Kichiji Dai has a unique career that includes nine years in the medical area and more than 13 years in the consumer-hobby industry. Throughout his career, he has continuously modified his marketing methods to fit a variety of industries. Kichiji began his career in medical marketing with endoscopic gadgets, which are essentially specialized digital cameras used in medical procedures such as gastro-endoscopy. Logical, evidence-based marketing, direct customer engagement, and decisions supported by medical data and reports were the driving forces for his work in this field. This methodical technique prepared the groundwork for Kichiji's entry into the consumer digital camera industry at Canon, where he used the same rational framework to forecast the direction of digital technology and comprehend customer behavior.
In the ASEAN market, success comes from balancing clear guidelines and flexibility to adapt to local business behaviors
Kichiji skillfully navigated the quickly changing digital world while working for Canon, predicting trends based on changes in consumer behavior and technology. He predicted that social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram would become essential for sharing images before high-speed internet and cloud storage become widely accessible. Kichiji was instrumental in directing the strategic creation of smart gadgets that allowed users to upload content and connect to the internet with ease, opening the door for advancements in digital photography.
The Way Ahead
Kichiji places a strong emphasis on cultural balance as the foundation of innovation, collaborating closely with local ASEAN partners as well as Japanese clients to customize solutions that satisfy the particular needs of each market. He is committed to growing the company's capabilities, especially in the Japanese animation market to meet increasing customer expectations. Understanding that Japanese anime and intellectual property (IP) are becoming more and more popular throughout Asia, including India, Kichiji wants to take advantage of this to help more businesses with their marketing initiatives. He plans to hire more employees and train his team to match his level of project management experience to support his clients better. “We hope that DOU Creation will be able to manage more projects and expand its market reach throughout Asia by enhancing the skills of our team. This proposal is part of our larger goal to assist more Japanese businesses in their foreign endeavors, especially in the quickly expanding anime-related industries”, concludes Kichiji.
Kichiji Dai, Founder & Managing Director, DOU Creations
Kichiji Dai, Founder & Managing Director of DOU Creations, graduated from Keio University with a degree in Economics and Management in 1996. He has over 20 years of experience in global and regional marketing roles. He has expertise in the consumer hobby industry, medical industry, and franchise store operations, specializing in business strategy, marketing campaigns, and event operations. Before founding DOU Creations in 2017, Kichiji held key leadership positions at Canon Global HQ and Canon Singapore, including Head of Marketing for Asia.
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