Published Biweekly by
Richard Posner
Website
http://www.successinjapan.com
Contact Us
newsletter@successinjapan.com
Thoughts From Above And Below
The Future of Immigration in Japan
Japanese rabbit-hutch houses and the people that occupy them have seen their day. People live in more spacious accommodations now and few, if any families, live and sleep in one room or lack the creature comforts of life. By and large, life is good on Japanese Maple Drive.
But there is a storm cloud on the horizon. Where have all the children gone. Gone to iPods and PlayStations everyone.
After all, wouldn't one rather have a sexually-liberated, dumbed-down society of childless adults spending all their booty on narcissistic doodads and toys?
The drudgery of making babies and draining adult-age pocketbooks on diapers and parenthood incidentals is not a scintilla as alluring to most as the newest Final Fantasy or Virtua GFighter 4: Evolution.
So Japan depopulates and the only way to maintain the infrastructure is to tax and spend. And when the spending far exceeds the tax base due to a dwindling population, a society such as Japan has only a few stark choices:
*Let a few big corporations survive and a wave of hollowing out, overseas outsourcing ensue. This will lead to blighted lives here and a Third World infrastructure down the road (with no pun intended).
*Revamp an industrial society which discourages and seldom provides low-cost childcare services for two-working-parent families.
*Or...let the floodgates of immigration be opened wide.
I chose the third because Japan's fifteen minutes of fame in history will surely pass in the next thirty years if it doesn't openly welcome foreigners to live and work as equals in this hermetically-sealed society.
The xenophobic, us vs. them policy of the Japanese government is widely believed by the Japanese to be justified. "We Japanese like to eat rice," is more than a statement of fact; it is a subtle way of saying:
"United we stand, divided we fall."
Nothing, in my humble estimation, could be further from the truth. Insularity and island xenophobia will relegate the Japanese nation to a once was great society in the history books.
Undoubtedly, this new toleration of foreigners cannot and will not happen with the flick of a magic wand. Their are language and customary barriers which will cause a painful adjustment for insiders and outsiders alike. But this huge is inevitable.
If you are a foreigner living and working here or wanting to do so, then you do have rights. Although you may not gain seniority in some positions, in some you can. Although you may not vote in most areas, in some you can. Although certain lines of business are exclusionary to foreigners, others such as car exporting and language school operations are available with few restraints.
In the special directory in this issue, I have listed some excellent resources for understanding the ground rules for foreigners living and working in Japan or hoping to do so.
Japan needs us, whether they realize it or not. United we stand, but divided we fall.
Stay tune for a webinar on this topic in the next few weeks.
Japan Niche Opportunity of the Week
The Stage
Japan is becoming a nation of obesity one small fatty at a time. The pace is most definitely accelerating. Though the number of obese in Japan is relatively low compared to others, my eyes do not lie after 29 years of observing the Japanese people.
Moreover, the people are growing taller and wider and the standard sizes of retail giant Uniqlo and other noted clothing chains in Japan no longer match the needs of a filling out nation where more and more people wear super-sized shoes, underwear, suits and dresses.
Stores catering to the taller, bigger and much fatter unfortunates in Japan are sadly lacking in numbers. And those stores carrying goods for bigger folks often offer colorless, drecky styles that even a tent maker in the Sahara Dessert might discard.
The Opportunity
Many retail stores are old hat and unappealing to the young. In my neighborhood alone, three retail clothing chains have folded in the last ten years, and the latest one is flagging.
The opportunity is for a niche market for big and tall is emerging, but opening a retail store for that purpose is not cost effective.
Instead creating an online bilingual shopping portal for men's and women's big and tall clothing and accessories is a possibility. Retail stores in Japan could carry the online catalog and have a sizing room which the salesclerk plugs into to determines clothing and accessories appropriate for the body dimensions inputted. A sampling of three or four suits, dresses, etc. could be carried by each partner shop for sampling only.
Do You Want to Introduce Your Product or Service in Japan? Looking for partners? CLICK HERE.
Empowering Japan Resources
Immigration and Naturalization
The English-language daily, The daily Mainichi, found that 63% of Japanese Favor Allowing Immigration of Unskilled Foreign Laborers. In practice, the chasm between the rights of Japanese and resident and non-resident foreigners is still huge.
Coming to live in Japan and set up shop here requires you to have your eyes wide open. The following mini directory are some resources to help you understand immigration issues and laws here and understand tour your legal rights.
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Coming Up24th Baby & Silver Show Tokyo 10/14/09~10/15/09 Medical care, health / welfare & nursing equipment, rehabilitation exhibits, goods for babies and child care, vehicles for children, child's furniture, intellectual toys, baby's clothing and the like. Living equipment for senior citizens (handcart, shopping cart, stick, wheelchair), etc. For details, CLICK HERE Metal Forming Tokyo 2009 10/14/09~10/17/09 Theme of this exhibition is -Evolving "Eco-Forming" Metal Processing Fair. For details, CLICK HERE |
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Luxury Good Consumers Decline in Japan
According to the Financial Times, the heyday when Japanese snap up luxury handbags and such have come to a screeching halt...and this is not due to the recession. A paradigm shift has occurred. Read more
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Get Your Blog Listed
If you are targeting Japan and Japanese markets, then visit the Japan Blog List. Of course you could list your blog, but more importantly you could discover joint venture partners and collaborators to bring your ideas to the marketplace.
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The Otaku Encyclopedia
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The Otaku Encyclopedia: An Insider's Guide to the Subculture of Cool Japan
Around the world, this cultish milieu has grown rapidly. Understanding it could lead to a fantastic side business.
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One Big Japan
A spiffy compilation of site feeds from Japan can be had by CLICKING HERE and visiting One Big Japan website.
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This Week's Challenge
No man is an island. We all need help in our pursuit of good life.
My personal business coach, Bob Dignard-Fung has been so
helpful to me in focusing in on what I want in life and introducing me to
his network of millionaire friends and associates, that I would be bereft
not to introduce you to him.
His next free coaching webinar is on Saturday night at 11p.m. (JST) and he
warmly welcomes you to join in and gather insights to push your business to
the next level or get out of the gate for the first time.
Go to Freedom Webinars
and get your life in high gear.