Why Selling in Japan Should Start With Learning, Not Pitching

Last month, I spoke with a founder from a European travel-tech company who wanted to start selling in Japan immediately. He assumed the fastest path was to get a local rep out making calls right away.

But before any outreach began, weeks were spent just understanding his business — the supplier network, the internal sales materials, how his team already talked to customers. Nothing was sent to a single Japanese partner yet.

We rebuilt the sales materials together, ran through the pitch as if we were his own team, and only then started reaching out.

If your Japan launch plan starts with “find someone to make calls,” feel free to reach out — happy to talk through a different sequence.