--- description: Breaking news and analysis from time.com. Politics, world news, photos, video, tech reviews, health, science, and entertainment news. title: Japan’s Businesses ​are ​Building a Global Future image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # Japan’s Businesses ​are ​Building a Global Future Export-focused growth has always been the cornerstone of Japan’s economy. With the nation facing a declining population and workforce, global sales have become more important than ever for businesses seeking future growth. In pursuit of that growth, firms are developing overseas bases, forming new partnerships and diversifying trade routes as they seek to capitalize on Japan’s reputation for quality, exporting the nation’s renowned standards as keenly as their products and systems. Shin Maekawa, president of Mayekawa MFG Co., Ltd., has predicted major global moves for his business. “Overseas expansion will definitely be key to our future growth. Given the shrinking population and the wealth of opportunities overseas, it is the next logical step,” said Maekawa. “High-growth markets such as Asia are our target, and we can only expect their growth to accelerate in the future. India has potential, however, it is quite a difficult market to enter. I am going there soon to work on a new joint venture launching in the region,” he added. Gen Terao, president of Balmuda Inc., also sees a bright future overseas. “The greatest potential we see right now lies not in the products themselves but in expanding into the overseas market. We are especially focused on the U.S., where we are actively working on branding initiatives and introducing several products,” said Terao. “This year, I am confident we will see growth in the U.S. market,” he added. Koji Suyama, president of Kureha Extron Co., Ltd., explained how his company is looking to expand its interests in the EV business. “We are already in the global market, but of course we are looking to do more business abroad,” said Suyama. “One of the main focus areas for us at the moment is India, where the EV trend recently started. We are aiming to start doing business with Indian companies that are at the beginning of EV development and production,” he added. Managing cultural variables is also a major consideration when collaborating with overseas partners. “There are many challenges due to the differences in lifestyles. However, it’s important not to lecture people in other countries just because their ways differ from ours,” said NittoCorp Inc. President Taiyo Abe. “I always strive to respect local customs and adapt our business to align with their preferences,” he added. Exporting Japanese standards to its Vietnamese team is a central part of Sansei Industry Co., Ltd.’s strategy. “We have some trainees from Vietnam at our Japanese site, which lets them learn skills necessary here. We also send management staff from Japan to Vietnam, so they can teach local people some of the methods we used,” said President Motohide Iijima. “This way, all parties can teach and learn in both countries. Most staff have been with the company since the site opened in 2011, meaning that they understand our company’s philosophy well,” he added. Taketoshi Fujita, president of Daisan Co., Ltd., aims to streamline its overseas services by rolling out digitization plans. “With the growth of peripheral businesses in the Singapore market and the education business started in Indonesia, the percentage of overseas sales will rise to 25% in the near future,” said Fujita. “As in Japan, we will also improve business productivity in Singapore by improving the quality of workers and utilizing digital technology. With Japan’s strong reputation and the quality of human resources there, we hope to be able to expand our business in this market,” he added. Eminento Co., Ltd. is also targeting growth in overseas sales by committing to the Japanese tradition of monozukuri, which means prioritizing quality and customer service above all else. “We are focusing on expanding our international sales and presence, and working hard to communicate the high quality of our products to all our clients, embodying the concept of monozukuri,” said President Keisuke Takano. “Our overseas sales currently account for 10% of our total revenue, and we are working toward increasing this to about one-third of our business over the next few years,” he added. Shigeki Aoki, president and CEO of Oji Imaging Media Co., Ltd., also has ambitious plans for his company’s global future. “Originally, we just provided paper for the domestic market but have now expanded to more than 10 different overseas markets, with different needs,” said Aoki. “Each client and user base has different requirements, which we first found in the U.S. in 1986, moving to Germany in 1990 and then Thailand in 1996,” he added. Japan’s Businesses ​are ​Building a Global Future ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/global-kigyo/japans-businesses-are-building-a-global-future/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/global-kigyo/japans-businesses-are-building-a-global-future/"},"headline":"Japan’s Businesses ​are ​Building a Global Future","datePublished":"2026-06-18T14:28:10.864Z","dateModified":"2026-06-09T07:27:57.431Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/branded-content/global-kigyo/japans-businesses-are-building-a-global-future/","keywords":[],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[],"articleSection":"","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/global-kigyo/japans-businesses-are-building-a-global-future/","name":"Japan’s Businesses ​are ​Building a Global Future"}}]}] ```