Challenge
Left to a distributor, you cannot see past the language and business-practice barrier. With no criteria for whether to continue, only the people and the environment change.
2. JAPAN → OVERSEAS | ALREADY OVERSEAS
Decide whether to continue, change or withdraw in as few as 12 weeks, from how local buyers respond
Revisit the winning path → revisit the counterparts → verify locally → decide. If you continue, we stay on through the turnaround.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
From a distributor-run business to a management decision in as few as 12 weeks
REM's approach
REM members who know the market work as members of your team, and run the business development needed for a management decision on the overseas business.
What you have after 12 weeks
Meetings and reactions from counterparts beyond your current distributor and customers, and the real picture of the distributor: the material to decide whether to continue, change or withdraw.
THE WALL
After expansion, the top challenge is leadership talent
Challenges of Japanese SMEs already overseas (multiple answers, n=357)
- 38.7%
- Securing leadership talent
- 31.4%
- Understanding regulations and business practices
- 31.1%
- Securing and developing customers
- 26.1%
- Exchange-rate risk
- 25.5%
- Collecting local market information
- 3.8→7.6%
- intend to downsize within three years (vs. previous survey)
- 39%
- continue without revenue after research and pilots
- 70.5%
- had not set withdrawal criteria in advance (2014 survey, dated)
Source: Shoko Chukin Bank, April 2025 (already overseas, n=357) / JICA ex-post monitoring, March 2022 / Japan Finance Corporation, February 2015 (2014 survey)
THE APPROACH
Revisit the current market and counterparts from the winning path
Re-examine the market and existing counterparts, and rethink the targets from the strategy your company can win with. Secondary information is gathered with AI, first-hand information face to face, and the decision is made after meeting the buyers locally.
01
Does the winning path still hold?
Look back at what local customers valued and what produced revenue, and update the winning path for the future.
02
Are the current country and counterparts the right ones?
Lay the numbers, contracts, distributor and team out on one page and find where things are stuck. From the industry's structure and market conditions, identify the industries and buyers to approach, and find customers beyond the distributor.
03
Verify locally (meetings)
Bypassing the distributor, meet customers and partner candidates directly under your business card. Record reactions and reasons for refusal.
04
Management decision (redesign)
Decide whether to continue, change or withdraw on first-hand information. If continuing, rebuild the counterparts and team into a structure that runs over the medium and long term.
12 WEEKS
The 12 weeks (as few as 12): identify → meet → decide
Meet the buyers before hiring or incorporating. Your side provides a decision maker at two regular meetings a month, one point of contact, and your materials and pricing.
Weeks 1-4 (typically 2)
Identify
- Update the winning path in a short sentence
- Lay numbers, contracts, distributor and team out on one page and find where things stop
- Agree the list of people to meet, the definition of a meeting and the target count
Weeks 5-10
Meet
- Bypassing the distributor, REM meets customers and candidates as part of your team
- Reactions, conditions and reasons for refusal are recorded
- The initial strategy is corrected against reality and updated
Weeks 11-12
Decide
- Continue, change or withdraw, decided by your management as a whole
- Continue or change: a plan to rebuild counterparts and team
- Withdraw: a procedure to stop in a way you can restart from
FEES
Fees: monthly retainer + success fee
From USD 4,000 / month (excl. tax) + success fee
As few as 12 weeks of work. Specialist time is quoted per project. The success fee is set by the number of qualified meetings; the definition of a meeting and the target count are agreed with you in weeks 1-4. No fixed cost for hiring or incorporation is committed up front.
Success fee earned (for a target of 10 meetings)
- 0-3 meetings: 0%
- 4 meetings: 25%
- 5 meetings: 50%
- 6-9 meetings: 60-90%
- 10 or more: 100%
For a different target, the same ratios apply. Results are measured by the progress of meetings, partnerships and contracts; we do not guarantee revenue.
The first step is a free 30-minute call
1) Free 30-minute call (online) → 2) We summarize your situation and candidate markets on one page → 3) We propose a plan and quote for as few as 12 weeks