Biz

Find out how Japan and Australia, and Japanese and Australians, do business.
日本とオーストラリア、そして日本人とオーストラリア人がどのようにビジネスを進めるのかを探ってみよう

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    How Did Wagyu Become An Aussie Success Story?

    和牛はどのようにオーストラリアで成功を収めたのか？ Australia is now one of the world’s largest producers of wagyu beef, but few people know that its success began with a remarkable partnership between Japanese genetics and Aussie cattle producers. This is the story of how trust, science and shared ambition created one of the world’s great agricultural success stories. 現在、オーストラリアは世界有数の和牛生産国です。しかし、その成功が日本の和牛遺伝資源とオージーの畜産家たちとの協力から始まったことは、あまり知られていません。信頼と技術、そして共通の志が生み出した日豪農業協力の物語です。 A Japanese Treasure Finds a New Home 日本の宝が南半球へ For centuries, wagyu cattle were raised almost exclusively in Japan. Their unique genetics produced the exceptional marbling that made Japanese beef famous throughout the world. 和牛は何世紀もの間、日本だけで大切に改良・飼育されてきました。その優れた遺伝資源は、美しい霜降り肉を生み出し、日本を代表する食文化の一つとなりました。 Until the late twentieth century, very few wagyu cattle or their genetics left Japan. 20世紀後半まで、生きた和牛やその遺伝資源が海外へ渡ることは、ほとんどありませんでした。 Everything changed when Aussie cattle producers recognised the…

  • Down Under Cobbers On Top In Japanese Business

    A longtime cobber contacted me this morning to let me know about a story of some of the Aussies doing roaring business in Japan; a market that can be tough to crack. I’m not a businessperson, or even remotely entrepreneurial, but I’ve had the pleasure to get to know plenty of Aussies in Japan who have done remarkably well in the Japanese market. Tracey Northcott is a superstar businessperson. I first met her in 2002 when she was running a cracking business centered on the then fledging field of mobile phones. She has since gone from strength to strength, succeeding in one business after another, all while juggling a busy…

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    The Japan-Australia Link As A Fallen Star Became A Black Hole

    Japan has become pretty much synonymous with high quality construction, but that didn’t prove to be in what was supposed to be a star project in Melbourne but ended up being more of a black hole. The 120-meter-high Melbourne Star Ferris wheel was supposed to be a boon for tourism in Australia’s largest city, as well as a strong leap forward for Sanoyas, an Osaka-based shipbuilding company looking to expand into the amusement park business. The Melbourne Star was plagued from the outset. It was supposed to open in 2006, but didn’t start taking customers until two years later. It ran for just 40 days when it was shut down…

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    A Symbol Of Japan That Fits Australia Like A Shoe

    Given the powerful pull of the surf culture in Australia, a link with Katsushika Hokusai‘s The Great Wave Off Kanagawa that immediately conveys an image of Japan was almost inevitable, but also symbolizes the strong ties between the two countries almost made for each other. Countless Australian companies, organizations, entrepreneurs, artists and others utilize or have utilized directly or derivatively the iconic Japanese work forming one of Hokusai’s Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji. Even though the Great Wave is an instantly recognizable image that embodies the essence of Japanese spirit, particularly with the inclusion of Mount Fuji, Australia has long recognized the work as a shared connection between the countries….

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    Panasonic Super Kangaroos Pouched A History With Plenty Of Bounce

    For decades, Japan had a professional basketball team called the Super Kangaroos, and true to the team’s name, it made great leaps at times. The Matsushita Electric Super Kangaroos, which would later be renamed the Panasonic Super Kangaroos, were founded in 1951 and competed in Japan’s top company and professional leagues, the old company-based national competitions, JBL Super League from 2000 to 2007 and then the successor Japan Basketball League where it would eventually relocate and change its name to the Wakayama Panasonic Trians. The Super Kangaroos would win 13 league championships throughout its existence in various top flight competitions. Sadly, the team never made it to the bj league,…

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    Jumping At Chances Through A Yen For Kangaroos

    Vacel Inc. is a Tokyo company with a yen for kangaroos, literally and figuratively speaking, as well as a track record with marsupials that leaps from sporting fields to dining tables. The trading and manufacturing company specializing in kangaroo derived products started off in April 1980 as a specialist in kangaroo leather products mostly for soccer boots and then expanded over the subsequent decades to encompass all sorts of businesses including marsupial meat. Vacel imports, manufactures and sells kangaroo leather, develops FabRoo 0.3 mm ultra-thin leather, operates the RooMeat brand for kangaroo meat for human and pet consumption, and provides market-entry and liaison services for overseas companies in Japan. Vacel…

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    Venerable Kangaroo Bakery Jumps At Its Chances

    Kangaroo is a small, and well-liked bakery in Kawasaki that has been operating for 38 years and has grown more recently to include a cafe, gallery space and architectural office, all in the same building called House Kangaroo. Kangaroo bakes natural yeast, organic flour breads, and sells weekend-only loaves and sandwiches, but also accepts reservations for bread as its products frequently sell out fast. Adjacent to Kangaroo is roo cafe, which opens only on Fridays and Saturdays, selling an array of beverages and treats. In the same building is roo space, which is a rentable gallery and pop-up space area used for exhibitions, shows and workshops. Architectural firm On is…

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    Mall Marsupial Puts Kangaroo In The Bag

    Kangaroo-do K.K. has bagged itself a position as a position as a mall retailer mainly in regional areas, but also in some shopping centers. It shouldn’t really come as a surprise because Kangaroo-do’s business is bags, which it sells from low price offerings to quality accessories from brands such as Porter and Dakota. Kangaroo-do hasn’t offered a public statement about why it chose to use a marsupial for its company name and logo, but it’s pretty obvious considering the link between its business items and pouches. Kangaroo-do is a retail chain that also sells wallets, travel luggage and small leather goods. It operates mall and specialty-shop outlets across Japan and…

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    Kangaroo House Aims To Make Everyone A Hero

    Kangaroo House is a group home facility in Kaizuka, Osaka Prefecture, that aims to make everyone a hero. Kangaroo House is operated by Cangaroo K.K. It is registered as a residential support service for people with intellectual, mental, or physical disabilities. It’s hard to track down information on this Kangaroo House, a name given to many organizations in Japan, and I don’t know why it chose a kangaroo as the symbol of its group home services, caring for residents with various disabilities and providing daily life support. As noted in many posts, Japanese companies often use a kangaroo to symbolize their operations because the marsupial’s pouch commonly symbolizes protection and…

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    Kanagawa Kangaroo Wants Clients To Leap, Not Lounge

    Kangaroo K.K.–a Yokohama startup named after Australia’s national animal–wants its clients to “bound, not lounge.” And it even picks office scents to help them. Kangaroo says it chose its company name and symbol because the kangaroo is a model of efficient, powerful leaping using the ground’s force with physiology that lets it “jump far while consuming less energy.” The company says it chose the name because it wants clients to “use us to leap forward”–operating more efficiently and achieving big bounds in performance. Kangaroo provides recruitment and job-placement services, franchise setup and operational support, digital marketing and branding services, and consulting. Kaori Aoi, who has a fine academic and business…