Category

International Business

Practical playbooks for Europe ↔ East Asia expansion. Real costs, real timelines, real lessons.

17 articles

Keiretsu: How Japanese Business Groups Work

International Business

Keiretsu: How Japanese Business Groups Work

A keiretsu is a close-knit collaboration of manufacturers, suppliers, distributors and banks. A short reference on what the term covers, how the distribution form controlled Japanese retail, and what it means for a European company trying to enter a market where the channel is already spoken for.

ryutsu keiretsu

japanese business groups

The SIB Subsidy: 50% Back on Japan Training and Market-Entry Help for Dutch SMEs

International Business

The SIB Subsidy: 50% Back on Japan Training and Market-Entry Help for Dutch SMEs

RVO's Support International Business scheme refunds a Dutch SME half the cost of an export training, a market-entry expert or an export coach, up to EUR 6,500 a year. There is no register of approved providers. This is what the published criteria actually say, and what you need from a provider before you apply.

support international business

Doing Business With the Japanese: How the Deal Actually Moves

International Business

Doing Business With the Japanese: How the Deal Actually Moves

Who decides in a Japanese deal, how long it takes, what a yes and a soft no sound like, and why European sellers misread silence. The deal process, not etiquette.

doing business with japanese

japanese business deals

selling to japan

Japan Joint Venture, Distributor or Subsidiary: Choosing a Route to Market

International Business

Japan Joint Venture, Distributor or Subsidiary: Choosing a Route to Market

Distributor, joint venture, branch or subsidiary, and KK versus GK: how European companies choose a Japan route to market by revenue stage and control appetite.

japan joint venture

japan distributor

Best Japan Market Entry Consultants for Europeans (2026)

International Business

Best Japan Market Entry Consultants for Europeans (2026)

An honest comparison of Japan market-entry support for European companies: government programmes (JETRO, EU-Japan Centre), the Tokyo-based specialist consultancies that dominate English-language search, Big-4 practices, and EU-side corridor firms. When each is the right choice.

japan market entry consultants

japan market entry

japan expansion consulting

EU-Japan and Netherlands-Japan Business Statistics (2026)

International Business

EU-Japan and Netherlands-Japan Business Statistics (2026)

A cite-ready reference of the key numbers on the Netherlands-Japan and EU-Japan business corridor: FDI stock, market-entry costs, cross-cultural training pricing, and the cultural-distance data most guides skip. Every figure sourced.

japan business statistics

netherlands japan investment

The Familiarity Trap: Why Japan Only Looks Like Home

International Business

The Familiarity Trap: Why Japan Only Looks Like Home

Japan looks familiar, same airports, same coffee chains, same slide decks, so European companies assume it works like home. That assumption is the most expensive mistake in market entry. Here is why the familiar surface misleads, and what to do instead.

japan market entry

doing business in japan

cross-cultural marketing

Doing Business in Japan from France: A Corridor Guide

International Business

Doing Business in Japan from France: A Corridor Guide

A France-to-Japan corridor guide: where French relationship-led, hierarchical, debate-driven business culture meets Japanese expectations, why luxury, cosmetics, and F&B are a genuine FR-JP strength, and how to assess entry readiness.

french companies japan

doing business in japan from france

france japan trade

Doing Business in Japan from Germany: A Corridor Guide

International Business

Doing Business in Japan from Germany: A Corridor Guide

Germany is the EU's largest export economy and one of Japan's most active European trade partners. This guide maps the German business-culture starting point against Japanese expectations, where German operators stumble, sector angles for automotive, machinery and chemicals, and a practical entry-readiness plan.

doing business in japan germany

german companies japan

Mittelstand japan entry

EU SaaS in Japan: How Japanese Buyers Actually Decide

International Business

EU SaaS in Japan: How Japanese Buyers Actually Decide

A market-and-culture guide for European SaaS founders selling into Japan. Why Japanese buyers expect different payment methods, a different pricing-page shape, and a different security signal, and how to read those expectations. The legal, tax, and certification detail is specialist work; this is the commercial and cultural layer.

saas market entry japan

saas pricing japan

Ringi: The Japanese Approval Process, Explained

International Business

Ringi: The Japanese Approval Process, Explained

A practitioner guide to *ringi*, the Japanese internal approval system, written for European sales teams selling into Japanese B2B accounts. Covers the *ringi-sho* document, *hanko* stamp chain, reading the routing list, the relationship to *nemawashi*, and the document trail European sellers should be providing at each stage.

Yahoo! Japan vs Google for European Brands

International Business

Yahoo! Japan vs Google for European Brands

Yahoo!Japan's standalone search share has fallen to single digits on StatCounter, yet its portal, display network, and LY-ecosystem assets still carry meaningful budget weight. This guide gives a per-segment decision matrix for European brands deciding where to invest, covering B2B, SaaS-SMB, D2C-millennials, luxury, travel, pharma, and consumer-electronics.

yahoo japan vs google

yahoo japan seo

yahoo japan display

Japan Market Entry Framework for European SMEs: The 3 Chapters

International Business

Japan Market Entry Framework for European SMEs: The 3 Chapters

How European SMEs actually enter the Japanese market, entry models, customer acquisition channels, and cross-cultural marketing, based on the Silkdrive × EU-Japan Centre webinar framework.

japan market entry

japan market entry sme

european smes japan

The Netherlands-Japan Business Corridor: Why It Matters

International Business

The Netherlands-Japan Business Corridor: Why It Matters

The Netherlands is Japan's #1 EU investment partner and Japan's largest European investment destination. Here's what that $190B+ bilateral corridor means for Dutch and European companies.

japan netherlands business

doing business in japan

japan market entry

The Real Cost of Entering the Japanese Market

International Business

The Real Cost of Entering the Japanese Market

Budget breakdown for European companies: setup costs, marketing spend, timeline, and the hidden expenses most guides skip.

japan market entry

market entry cost

Japan Market Entry Guide for European Companies [2026]

International Business

Japan Market Entry Guide for European Companies [2026]

A comprehensive 2026 guide for European companies entering Japan: sector breakdowns, entry-mode taxonomy, EU-Japan EPA mechanics, GDPR-APPI adequacy, sales-cycle architecture, and the 12-month operational checklist.

International Business Expansion: A European Playbook

International Business

International Business Expansion: A European Playbook

What European companies get wrong expanding abroad, what cultural preparation costs, and the entry decisions that shape the first eighteen months.

international expansion

global business

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