EU Gateway to Japan – Day Three / EU Gateway 日本へ – 3日目
Our third day in the Japanese capital Tokyo, and by now Jon & Vernon must be well versed in the Japanese business customs that they spent the weeks building up to the EU Gateway Business Mission learning. Another full day of manning the exhibition stand in the EU Pavilion section of the Japan Home and Building Show at Tokyo Big Site, again with some pre-planned meetings along with walk-ups also very much welcome. The day concluded with a trip the EU Embassy to hear a couple of speeches from the ambassador Patricia Flor before a networking evening for local and global business people to attend, along with EU delegates.
Vernon: “I certainly felt more at home today. I had a far greater understanding of Japanese business customs and manners, and whilst I am picking up a few words here and there having our own Japanese translator has been absolutely invaluable. Being able to cross the language barrier really helps us because the Maxprobe range and TrapJumper are more than as they appear; there is so much thought that has gone into developing them for the market rather than just getting a product into the market.”
Jon: “I agree with Vernon, you could tell from the questions that were being asked by the Japanese businessmen and women who came to see us today, and the subsequent follow-up questions, that there was a great understanding of what we at Scanprobe do and why we believe we have the market leading push rod pipeline inspection system. It certainly feels at this stage that there is a place in the Japanese market for the Maxprobe and TrapJumper.”
Tomorrow is the last full day for Vernon and Jon, here’s hoping they have a strong finish and come home with some great business connections!
EU Gateway to Japan – Day Two / EU Gateway 日本へ – 2日目
Day two in Japan, and the first day of the exhibition, this is the day everything has been building up to. With the help of the team at the EU Gateway to Japan Business Mission, we had been able to translate some key documentation into Japanese for any delegates who would come to visit us on the stand, and this was a very welcome piece of support! Hopefully in time we will forge a need to at least gain a basic level of language understanding as we look to expand our distribution network into Japan.
Armed with his bi-lingual business cards, a sharp suit and a world of enthusiasm, Vernon has spent the day (with the help of our own on-site human translator) speaking to delegates, both walk-up and pre-planned to discuss the strengths and benefits of the Maxprobe pipeline inspection camera system, and what such a product could achieve in the Japanese drainage, gas & general pipeline inspection market.
Vernon: “What an amazing day this has been for me. I have worked in many different countries over the years and today has given me the same, if not greater, level of excitement. I am learning so much about the business customs in Japan, and equally importantly for this particular venture, the market driving factors. In truth today has just flown by.”
Jon: “It’s been great to see the level of attention that we’ve had on the stand today, and the pre-planned meetings that the EU Gateway team have helped to arrange have brought a lot of interest. Already this looks like a very intriguing marketplace and I’m looking forward to seeing how things develop tomorrow.”
EU Gateway to Japan – Day One / EU Gateway 日本へ：1日目
This week marks the beginning of the EU Gateway Business Mission to Japan, for which Scanprobe Techniques Ltd fought off over a hundred other companies to be selected with around 40 others to represent our business to the Japanese market.
For EU Gateway | Business Avenues, the Construction & Building Technologies sector covers technologies and materials related to the engineering, the design, the construction, the demolition and demolition waste services, the fitting, the arrangement, the finishing of public and private buildings as well as its renovation or deconstruction/ demolition and infrastructure works (roads, airports, ports, etc.). Recent trends underline the concept of Circular Economy – low carbon materials, greater durability or reusability/ recycling and resource efficiency. For Scanprobe in particular, being offered such a well structured platform and fantastically arranged audience of prospective businesses to present our company and products (the Maxprobe and the TrapJumper) to was an opportunity not to be missed, and has been a welcome addition to what as already been a tremendously busy 2018 activities calendar. As this is a very exciting time for our company, we are running a daily diary with our Managing Director Jon and UK Sales Manager Vernon as they embark on this business mission….day one!
Vernon: “Flying out Saturday evening UK time and arriving Sunday afternoon in Tokyo, there was little time to relax once we had arrived at the hotel. There was a “Welcome & Networking Gathering” in the bar on the 30th floor of the Grand Nikko Hotel Daiba at 6pm which was a great opportunity to meet some of the other companies taking this opportunity to bring their business to Japan. We were able to meet with the EU Gateway Communications Manager, Piero Zilio who was able to answer our questions ahead of this busy week for us, and we could share our stories and experiences so far with others making the journey across the world. There are some very interesting people and companies joining us on this business mission, definitely feels like we are in great company here on this EU Gateway Business Mission.”
Jon: “Monday was a very helpful grounding experience I feel. The morning had everyone in the ‘Ginga’ room where after a quick welcome every company had the opportunity to present an elevator pitch about themselves, and as Vernon said, some very interesting companies among us. Once the presentations were finished, including a couple of Sector Expert Presentations, the afternoon was spent visiting Kajima Corporation Technical Research Institution (KaTRI for short!) to learn about their research and development methods, and how they themselves are helping to drive businesses and manufacturing techniques forwards. This was a very interesting trip (and it also meant that I could leave Vernon alone to set up our stand!) Now we are just about to have some dinner and prepare for the first day of the exhibitions and meetings tomorrow.”
Follow Jon & Vernon’s progress at the EU Gateway Business Mission to Japan tomorrow!