Over the past decade, the brand consultancy RISKYBRAND INC. has been taking the pulse of Japanese consumers through its annual nationwide surveys.  In this relatively short span of time, they have witnessed subtle but significant changes in the Japanese’s attitudes, beliefs and purchase behavior, with an on-going shift towards what they call a ‘cynical mindset’.

Understanding what’s driving this shift will be fundamental to help brands maintain their appeal. In the July CI Network lunch, RISKYBRAND CEO Mr. Kazuteru Tasaki will share on the major trends that are expected to affect the future of marketing in Japan and provide practical insights into what can make Japanese consumers tick in the age of cynicism.

Date – Tuesday, 9 July 2019 1230PM-1400PM

Venue –

Roppongi Hills Club: Roppongi Hills Club- la cucina

51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,

6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,

Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

More About Our Guests

-Kazuteru Tasaki is the CEO and co-founder of RISKYBRAND.

With over 30 years’ experience in market research, Kazuteru is one of the pioneers of psychographic research in Japan. He founded RISKYBRAND in 2001 with Sony top designer Noriaki Kozuka. The agency’s proprietary research engine MINDVOICE®, that gathers data across the values, beliefs and lifestyle of the Japanese, was born from Kazuteru’s strong belief in a more holistic approach to research that apprehends customers not only as consumers, but as individuals, revealing more meaningful layers of insight into what makes them tick. Today RISKYBRAND has evolved into a multi-cultural strategic branding agency that combines deep insights with the power of design to bring beautiful breakthrough to major domestic and international brands, from Toyota to Hilton group.

-Born in a French-Japanese family, Apolline Coat graduated from HEC Business School

in France. After working in various marketing roles between Paris and Tokyo including two years at Evian Japan, she joined RISKYBRAND in January 2018 as a research and strategy planner.

• 

Profit and loss, looking at the deals in the pipeline, and talking about how to grow a business are all very important roles of corporate leadership. However, to bring longevity and growth to our businesses, there is more than just number crunching.

In our June luncheon, we are please to welcome back Mr. Philippe Grall. Mr. Grall will be sharing on the power of putting dreams back into ourselves and in our organizations. As an accomplished executive coach and leadership trainer, he has been able to help transform several businesses here in Japan to become national competitors. He will engage you on how to cultivate the role of the dreamer, the realists, and the critic in your organization.

Philippe got great reviews after his last visit to CI and we look forward to seeing him again!

More About Mr. Grall-
Mr. Grall is the founder of Equilibre k.k. in 2006. He is an executive coach for several leading brands in Japan. 
His clients are famous international brands (luxury, fashion, Food, retailer) and pharmaceutical industry. Philippe is a member of Marshall Goldsmith 100 coaches since 2017.

Date – Tuesday, 11 Jun 2019 1230PM-1400PM
Venue –
Roppongi Hills Club: Roppongi Hills Club- The Horizon Room
51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,
6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,
Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

2019 (G3) How Big is Big Data?  The Real Story Straight From The Source

“BIG DATA became a commonly used term these days. We know that a huge share of all data consists of Netflix streams, Social Media messages, tracking of internet usage preferences, content in ERP and CRM systems. Autonomous driving will be also very data intensive.

The May CEO Insights luncheon will highlight few examples from different areas : Movie Industry, Life Science, Manufacturing Industries, and the Medical Field. Some applications blur the line between reality and science fiction.”  The discussion will be lead by Mr. Stefan Sacre, CEO of Carl Zeiss Japan.

More About Stefan

Trained as physicist and engineer he started his career as professor at Tokyo University. After a term as agent at the European Commission he joined industry- as CEO of sensor and automation companies. Now he is with ZEISS.

Date: 14 May 2019 (Tuesday)
Time: 12:30pm to 2:00pm
Venue: Roppongi Hills Club – La Cucina
51F Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, 6-10-1 Roppongi Minato-ku, 106-6151

Japan is famous for its economic transformation from post-War devastation to one of the world’s top economic powers.  But how much progress did Japan really make after the ‘Bubble’ burst?  With the new Japanese emperor getting ready to ascend the throne of the land of the rising sun, we can reflect on what actually happened during the time of his father, otherwise known as Heisei.

In the May meeting, we are pleased to welcome Mr. Keiichiro Asao.  Mr. Asao started his career at the Industrial Bank of Japan (“IBJ”), which is now part of Mizuho Bank, and was a member of the Diet (both the House of Representatives and the House of Councilors) for almost 20 years.  He will share his insights on what happened during Heisei, where he sees Japan heading into the new Reiwa Era, and brainstorm with the CI members about the future of Japan from both political and economic perspectives.

More About Keiichiro Asao

Mr. Asao is not your typical Japanese politician, he is a business professional with extensive political experience.  At one time, he was the leader of a political party called Your Party (i.e. minna-no-tou), and is currently a member of the Liberal Democratic Party.  He is one of the rare top Japanese politicians who are fluent in English.  He received a law degree from the University of Tokyo and an MBA from Stanford University.  

Date – Friday, 10 May 2019  12:30-14:00

Venue –

Roppongi Hills Club: Roppongi Hills Club- La Cucina (Italian)

51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,

6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,

Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

Japan has the highest density of vending machines worldwide–almost 5 million nationwide.  In fact, there is approximately 1 vending machine per every 23 people in Japan with annual sales total more than $60 billion.  Ever wonder what supply chain supports this massive industry and how a beverage product that hasn’t changed it formula in over 120 years continues to grow?  Then come hear Edward Walters, the Head of Logistics for Coca-Cola Bottlers Japan and 20 year veteran of the Coca-Cola system explain more about this topic and how it is supplied around the world.

Don’t miss this chance to hear from one of our peers and global brand c-level.  We will discuss what it takes to make a brand that will last.

Date: 9 April 2019 (Tuesday)
Time: 12:30pm to 2:00pm
Venue: Roppongi Hills Club – La Cucina
51F Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, 6-10-1 Roppongi Minato-ku, 106-6151

The recent 108 days incarceration of Carlos Ghosn has raised many passionate debates and questions of Japan’s law enforcement:  “how it is done and what CAN and CANNOT be done.”

In our April luncheon, we are fortunate to have Mr. James Moynihan join us, an expert on law enforcement and intellectual property (IP), to answer that very question.

Mr. Moynihan, currently the Director of Louis Vuitton Intellectual Property Department/Japan office (since 2007), has been in Japan a total of 25 years on five separate tours.  His first tour dates back to 1971-1972 at Sophia University/University of Notre Dame Year-In-Japan Program.  As the FBI Special Agent/Attorney from 1981 to 2006, New York State Prosecutor from 1979 to 1981, and General Motors Corporation Labor Lawyer from 1977 to 1979, Mr. Moynihan has accumulated a wealth of knowledge, expertise, and case history.

In addition to discussing law enforcement (i.e. criminal procedure law, extraditions, deportation, evidentiary assistance matters, etc.) Mr. Moynihan is happy to discuss and/or field any question on:  Asian organized crime, international terrorism investigations, Japan Red Army investigations, development and use of informant/confidential sources of information; security measures for special events such as the 2019 Japan Rugby World Cup or 2020 Tokyo Olympics; or about intellectual property (IP) enforcement from an IP right holder’s perspective.

You will not want to miss this one!

Date – Friday, 12 April 2019 1230PM-1400PM
Venue –
Roppongi Hills Club: Roppongi Hills Club- La Cucina (Italian)
51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,
6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,
Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

The Edelman Trust Barometer, the world’s largest survey of trust in institutions conducted in 28 countries shows that only 40% of Japanese employees trust the company they work for. This is somewhat counter intuitive given the image of the self-sacrificing, all for the company image that is held about Japans salarymen. Ross will address this and other issues including what is behind the Trump phenomenon and rising populism in the world’s advanced economies.

March’s CEO Insights meeting will welcome Edelman’s Japan boss, Mr. Ross Rowbury. Ross has been living and working in Japan for 35 years. Originally working in finance, Ross moved to the public relations industry some twenty years ago. Over that period he has been advising executives from both Japanese and non-Japanese companies on communications strategy and implementation.

Date– Tuesday, 12 March 1230PM-1400PM
Venue–
Roppongi Hills Club- Private Dining Room – The Horizon Room
51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, 6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,
Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

Profit and loss, looking at the deals in the pipeline, and talking about how to grow a business are all very important roles of corporate leadership. However, to bring longevity and growth to our businesses, there is more than just number crunching.

In our March luncheon, we are please to welcome back Mr. Philippe Grall. Mr. Grall will be sharing on the power of putting dreams back into ourselves and in our organizations. As an accomplished executive coach and leadership trainer, he has been able to help transform several businesses here in Japan to become national competitors. He will engage you on how to cultivate the role of the dreamer, the realists, and the critic in your organization.

Philippe got great reviews after his last visit to CI and we look forward to seeing him again!

More About Mr. Grall-
Mr. Grall is the founder of Equilibre k.k. in 2006. He is an executive coach for several leading brands in Japan.
His clients are famous international brands (luxury, fashion, Food, retailer) and pharmaceutical industry. Philippe is a member of Marshall Goldsmith 100 coaches since 2017.

Date – Friday, 8 Mar 2019 1230PM-1400PM
Venue –
Roppongi Hills Club: Roppongi Hills Club- The Horizon Room
51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,
6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,
Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

 Timothy Langley from Langley Esquire, and fellow CI network member will be hosting this quarter’s OTR.

 I’m very much looking forward to hosting the OTR dinner in three-weeks. 

The Details:

WHEN: Thursday, February 28th: 18:00-20:20

WHERE:Hacienda Del Cielo  (fabulous Mexican in Daikanyama!) 9F Mansard Daikanyama Building, 10-1 Sarugakucho, Shibuya-ku,                  Tokyo 150-0033                  Phone: 03-5457-1521    Google Map here

COST :  Cover-charge ¥2500 (plus tax) – CASH ONLY please                 Food provided (see menu below) … drinks-as-you-go, Nomihoudai (all-you-can-drink) possible for additional ¥2500 (plus tax) (see drink menu, below)

I think that’s pretty sweet for a Mexican restaurant. Plus, it’s a fun place… we’d have the upstairs just to ourselves; should be enough for 20 people or so! RSVP to guarantee your seat! 

Looking forward to seeing you then!
Very best regards,
Timothy