It’s a widely held belief that sometimes your office mates can know you better than even some of your most well worn friends. In my case, this may indeed hold some kernel of truth, as nearly everyone in my office during the last two weeks has knowingly greeted me with, “So…how’s the iPad?” Even during the days leading up to my acquisition of Apple’s latest flagship product, my technology obsession was readily apparent in the office.
How ironic it is then that, while my primary reason for moving my life to Japan was driven by my fascination with the country’s technology, I now find myself regularly reminded of the amazing software and hardware innovations coming from the U.S. in the form of the iPhone and now the iPad. Although some are understandably somewhat skeptical about the potential impact of the product that critics insist on calling a “large iPod Touch,” spending a couple of weeks with this device has only reaffirmed my faith in the ideas and creative business enterprises originating from the U.S., even in the midst of a rough economic recovery. I share a few more of my thoughts on Apple and their latest retail marvel in the pages that follow (“The iPad Cometh,” page 39).
The only thing more fun than getting an early Japan-side look at the iPad was knowing that our months spent researching and carefully assembling this package would result in an exciting cover story (“Magnetic Cities,” page 28) that has finally come to fruition. Although some ACCJ members have already mapped their path in Japan in terms of business development, many new entrepreneurs, as well as growth-minded veteran expats, remain open to the possibilities inherent in the nation’s diverse landscapes.
Covering the cities of Osaka, Nagoya, Fukuoka, Tokyo and Kyoto, as well as their surrounding areas, we’ve constructed an overview of the relative benefits of launching a foreign business, or possibly expanding your existing Japanese concern to one of the aforementioned areas.
The detailed commentary and anecdotes we’ve extracted from some of the local business experts went a long way towards dispelling some of the myths related to these areas, as well as adding helpful details that further illuminate places most of us Japan-based expats thought we already knew. But most importantly, we’ve managed to suss out the facts and figures that tell the real story behind these cities and what those data points mean in terms of successfully doing business in Japan. We’d like to thank those local market pioneers of foreign business for opening up and contributing their expert opinion.
Finally, I’d like to once again invite ACCJ members interested in contributing their expert perspective and analysis to the Journal to contact us at: editorial@accjjournal.com. We welcome and appreciate all members who desire more involvement with the rest of the ACCJ community, so we look forward to hearing from you.
Please contact us.
