Our Experiences
No two Japan Entry projects are the same.
We carefully identify companies that have a high potential for success in the Japan market and strong business synergies with industry-leading Japan corporates. Select past and current projects include:
HOW WE CAN HELP
Our years of Japan Entry experience and extensive network of corporate partners allows us to work with startups across many industries. Here are some examples of how we can help your company successfully navigate the Japan market:
ENTERPRISE SOFTWARE
Japan is home to one of the largest enterprise software markets in the world. Its market size and sophisticated infrastructure make it a highly attractive market for enterprise software providers that have already found success in the US. Furthermore, with Japan being a strong gateway to other Asian markets and Tokyo being home to the second highest concentration of Global Fortune 500 companies, enterprise software providers looking to grow their business should consider entering Japan.
While many enterprise software companies have successfully entered the Japan market, Japan can be difficult for companies that are not familiar with the local market and its intricacies.
HOW WE CAN HELP
BlackShip offers a full range of bizdev and sales services to support our partner companies and create go-to-market strategies. Our B2B sales team can act as our partners' local sales team by creating and cold calling a whitelist of potential clients for lead generation, and by setting in-person sales meetings with decision makers to close deals.
BlackShip provides companies with a dedicated team on the ground that is able to show traction and market fit before companies fully commit to entering Japan. Once our partners decide on expanding to the Japan market, BlackShip can scale the business further by facilitating conversations with large distributors and resellers for partnerships and investments.
Since identifying a suitable country manager in Japan is often difficult for foreign companies and can take valuable time, BlackShip can work to start making sales immediately as the company's local team. Meanwhile, our local network allows us to search for and hire qualified individuals for specific roles more efficiently and effectively than foreign companies attempting to do so on their own.
CONSUMER SERVICES
With the third largest economy in the world, Japan boasts the third highest consumer expenditure globally and fourth largest e-commerce market. In addition, Japan is home to the world's largest city by population and GDP (Tokyo).
With its sophisticated infrastructure and savvy, affluent middle-class, Japan has the potential to be a significant market for various consumer and B2B2C services. While many large, incumbent corporations have experienced stagnating growth, they are desperate for innovation and make great potential partners due to existing customer bases and sales channels.
Despite a number of consumer service providers having successfully entered the Japan market, navigating the unique business culture and differing consumer preferences and expectations often proves to be a challenge for new foreign entrants.
HOW WE CAN HELP
We work closely with our partners to create and execute the local strategy and build the business from the ground up. By utilizing our network and existing relationships with industry-leading Japan corporates, we are able to facilitate investments and partnerships to grow the businesses even further — faster.
The majority of the companies we work with are mature startups that have established market fit in the US and are ready to expand internationally. Many of these companies either overlook Japan due to the belief that it's a difficult market to penetrate, or are unsure of the best plan of action. Our ability to act as a company's local team and conduct physical operations — as well as facilitate partnerships with major players in Japan — allows us to clearly determine how the service should operate in Japan.
DEEP TECH
The largest sector of Japan's economy is manufacturing, and is comprised of industry giants with global footprints, as well as many non-tech businesses. These incumbents are desperate for innovation and searching for ways to implement the newest technologies to maintain their global position and relevancy. With strong advocacy from the Japanese government, these corporates have taken the initiative to aggressively pursue POC projects with external partners in order to stay ahead of the curve.
This shift toward open innovation and digital transformation has made Japan a great market for startups to obtain POC projects. However, working with local manufacturing giants is challenging without the use of a Japanese intermediary and a team with a deep understanding of both business and cultural differences between the US and Japan.
HOW WE CAN HELP
Having a local team in a new market has many strategic advantages, especially in Japan. Since many Japan corporates tend to avoid direct business relationships with foreign companies, we can act as an intermediary to drive the business forward. Our ad-hoc local team assists by managing potential deals and domestic relationships for companies that are not quite ready to hire an entire local team. We work closely with our partners and act as their on the ground bizdev team to drive customer acquisition, sales, partnerships and investments.