It is common knowledge that Japan is a hotbed for tech and innovation, being home to many legacy brands that dominate globally in the hardware and robotics space. With the advent of tech becoming increasingly democratised, tech solutions have sprouted not only within large enterprises but also in young and exciting startups. Today, the country boasts a slew of unicorns under its belt, proving that Japan’s vibrant startup ecosystem is equally formidable.

In order to shed light on the country’s strong support for the startup ecosystem, e27 recently hosted a webinar titled “Market Access Japan: Why and how you should expand your business to Japan ”. Moderated by Dennis Poh, Founder and CEO of Legatcy, the programme was designed to help global startups understand the challenges and benefits of expanding to Japan, as well as the kinds of support that the country is able to offer.

Economic resilience

Hari Sivan, CEO and Co-Founder of Singapore headquartered SOCASH, explained that some of the qualities that make Japan an attractive destination for the digital cash displacement platform is its large B2B market. Moreover, the country offers one of the most valuable SaaS business markets and boasts a significant amount of banking activity — which is an expensive operation.

“As with any tech startup, you’re looking at large markets, scale-out markets. So Japan is one option,” expressed Sivan. “Around 2019, we decided we needed to focus on Japan. We had started that process during late 2019, then COVID-19 happen. We felt that among all the countries, Japan still presents the most attractive economy,” he added.

Also read: 26 Japan startups eye business growth with the help of Techstars

According to a 2021 report launched by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the Japanese economy is projected to grow by 1.8% by the end of 2021, 3.4% in 2022, and 1.1% in 2023 — optimistic numbers despite the continued presence of COVID-19.

When it comes to scaling, Sivan explained that market-entry is extremely tough and is akin to starting from zero all over again. For SOCASH, the company simply looked at which countries had the best chances of success in a two to three-year horizon, and Japan basically checked out in all the variables that the company was looking for.

Opportunities that await startups in Japan

According to Masahiko Honma, Co-Founder and General Partner at Incubate Fund, Japan mainly has two central business opportunities for global startups: B2B SaaS market and deep tech.

The country currently holds the record for the second largest B2B SaaS market in the world, next to the United States. On the other hand, Masahiko elaborated that the Japanese market is keen on supporting deep tech startups offering innovations in healthcare, robotics, AI, and other cutting-edge technologies.

In terms of fundraising, Japan has a very mature VC and private equity fund industry. With the right strategic priorities, it is perfectly feasible for new startups to rouse interest among Japanese investors. Such is the case for SOCASH which was able to land investments from Japan even before their entry into the country which was largely due to their performance and success in Southeast Asia.

Also read: Modern solutions to modern problems: How Plusman LLC innovates healthcare

Another indicator of the country’s strong investment culture is the fact that a lot of investments in the general Asian ecosystem come from Japan, even among companies that operate elsewhere. This shows that Japanese investors are very open to supporting innovations as long as they are backed with a strong business model and a promising idea.

To illustrate, Incubate Fund itself has over 250 startups in its portfolio, making it one of the largest seed stage investors in the country. The Japan headquartered VC firm also holds operations in Singapore, India, and the United States which goes to show that they mean business when it comes to supporting global ideas.

Challenges and support for global startups

 Of course, when it comes to businesses expanding in any country, it is important that they have access to support and assistance from local ecosystem players. In Japan, one institution leading the charge is the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO). JETRO is a Japanese governmental non-profit organization that supports not only Japanese startups seeking to scale outside Japan, but also global startups exploring opportunities in Japan.

The key thing for such expansions is always going to be localisation and adapting to unique cultures and common practices. For SOCASH, being able to navigate through complex ecosystems is invaluable especially for a young startup. “In Japan, each prefecture probably has its own innovation ecosystem,” Sivan explained. As such, JETRO’s ability to connect global startups to local ecosystems allow these startups to explore strong partnerships, B2B networks, and accomplish so much more without expending too much time and effort.

Also read: Online threats? Protect yourself with these tools

How the Japan government operates is by offering a full-range of services designed to support startups often depending on the maturity level of the companies. According to Kiewai Khoo, JETRO’s Director for Business Development and PR, the organisation provides global startups with local market information as well as connecting them to figures, potential partners, and institutions that they should be working with. “We are the first window they could approach to understand how they should enter the market,” said Khoo.

To gain access to more insights on the Japan market and how your startup can expand in the country, you can view the full webinar below.

Also, if you are looking for a more personalised discussion about your specific startup’s plan to expand to Japan, we invite you to sign up for a chance to have an exclusive 1-to-1 consultation with JETRO. You can sign up here.

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This article is produced by the e27 team, sponsored by JETRO

We can share your story at e27, too. Engage the Southeast Asian tech ecosystem by bringing your story to the world. Visit us at e27.co/advertise to get started.

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Grab has completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Malaysia’s mass-premium supermarket chain Jaya Grocer, the tech giant announced today.

The acquisition enables Grab to bring more Jaya Grocer retail stores onto its marketplace and leverage Jaya Grocer’s large supplier network further to expand its GrabSupermarket product line at lower costs. This way, the two companies plan to bring on-demand grocery delivery to more consumers in the Southeast Asian country.

Additionally, Grab and Jaya Grocer also announced the rollout of GrabPay and GrabRewards across all Jaya Grocer physical retail stores, expanding the former’s cashless wallet usage.

“It is our vision to make on-demand groceries more accessible for everyone. Jaya Grocer is known for its wide selection of good-quality fresh produce and grocery products. By combining our extensive on-demand delivery fleet and capabilities with Jaya Grocer’s strong retail presence and supplier network, we can deliver these quality products to more homes even faster,” said Anthony Tan, Group CEO and Co-Founder, Grab.

Also Read: Grab injects Series C funding into Indonesia’s e-investment platform Bareksa

Established in 2008, Jaya Grocer operates over 40 stores today, with the majority located in Klang Valley.

“I have built Jaya Grocer from the ground up — from our first store in Klang Valley to over 40 stores today. Grab’s solid track record and ability to execute in a hyperlocal way gives me confidence that I have found the right partner to take Jaya Grocer to new heights. This acquisition provides us with an amazing opportunity to not only grow as a company but also grow the market for online grocery services in Malaysia,” said Teng Yew Huat, Founder, Jaya Grocer.

The acquisition comes at a time of accelerated growth in on-demand grocery delivery services. As much as 64 per cent of Southeast Asia’s internet users purchased groceries online at least once during the pandemic, yet online grocery transactions only accounted for approximately 2 per cent of the total grocery spend.

It is estimated that online grocery in Southeast Asia could grow to US$50 billion in gross merchandise value — the size of the entire e-commerce market today — at a 10 per cent penetration rate similar to advanced markets.

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Ready to meet new startups to invest in? We have more than hundreds of startups ready to connect with potential investors on our platform. Create or claim your Investor profile today and turn on e27 Connect to receive requests and fundraising information from them.

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As businesses emerge from a pandemic that drove many to adopt digital payments, they are now looking to leverage their investments for faster recoveries. What’s more, consumers too are showing all the signs that digital payments will continue to grow; 93 per cent intend to try at least one emerging payment method in the next year, while close to three in four would both shop at small businesses more frequently if they offered more payment options, and are more loyal to retailers that offer multiple payment options.

Looking at this trend, I’d argue that smart businesses should even view payments acceptance as a revenue growth driver.

The more digital payment options a merchant makes available, the more points of interaction (POI) it has with consumers. As the number of touchpoints grows, they can drive operational efficiencies, create loyalty programs and improve the customer experience.

These outcomes can help businesses grow their revenues and the ROI on their acceptance investments.

For example, QR codes have proliferated around Asia as a simple and easy acceptance point, and many businesses have started digitising payments with them. They are also mobile, a feature we’re making even easier for micro and small merchants through its patented QR on Card technology.

It does what the name suggests: places a QR code on a card, so consumers and micro-merchants can use one tool to accept and receive payments – from anywhere. This solution requires little onboarding and no hardware costs for merchants. It also provides consumers with an easy, touchless and hygienic way to pay.

Also Read: Pocket power: 27 personal finance startups in SEA to help you manage money

Getting paid is now even easier

There are two additional ways to solve the “getting paid” challenge. In one instance, consumers can scan a QR code without the need for an app directing them to a merchant’s online checkout site. With this, the mobile device essentially becomes a checkout counter through which they can pay with stored credentials or Click to Pay.

We’re working on a second solution with banking partners to enable consumers to scan a QR code and pay using a Mastercard card.

While QR codes provide a convenient experience for consumers, tap and go contactless payments with a card or mobile device are the fastest way to pay. Small merchants– mainly those who want to broaden their customer base– can provide this experience via Soft POS.

They download the app-based acceptance point onto a mobile device to do so. This helps merchants widen their acceptance net, giving them the flexibility to accept payments in and out of the store and provide a better consumer experience earlier in their growth stages.

Accepting account-to-account and card payments facilitates digitalising a significant proportion of merchant revenues. Soft POS advocates recognise this and propose several business management tools integrated within the acceptance point.

This transformation opens new avenues for merchants to digitalise other aspects of their business. For example, Zoho offers small businesses more than 45 integrated suites of business apps through our partnership.

Smart POS will only get smarter

For small and medium-sized businesses with greater in-store presence, smart, dedicated terminals can be a more efficient, easier way to accept payments of all types and free up mobile devices. These can also be integrated into more robust software solutions.

As the next generation of payment solutions enables biometric payments, the contactless experience will ratchet up yet another notch. In the not-too-distant future, a consumer will be able to walk up to a self-checkout Smart POS, smile, be directed to a checkout page with their stored card credentials, use loyalty points at the point of sale, approve a transaction and walk out of the store– all without needing to touch a card or phone. And this will happen with the consumer’s full consent and their privacy protected.

Also Read: Telling the fortune of digital payments in 2021, CNY style

This futuristic consumer experience is not too far away. According to the Mastercard New Payments Index, 44 per cent of consumers in the Asia Pacific said they plan to use biometrics next year.

To capture this growth, we’ve partnered with an industry leader to create a certification process to ensure biometrics vendors provide the highest level of cybersecurity possible. Innovating and providing multiple POS solutions will enable merchants to tailor their payments strategy, better engage consumers and capture new revenue opportunities.

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast, or infographic.

Join our e27 Telegram group, FB community, or like the e27 Facebook page

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MedHyve, an online B2B medical equipment marketplace, has raised US$407,500 in pre-seed investment.

Pegasus Tech Ventures and Foxmont Capital co-led the round, with former Lazada and Alibaba executives from 10K Ventures joining. 

MedHyve will use the capital to strengthen operations and technology to make medical supplies procurement in growth markets, like the Philippines, more efficient and cost-effective. 

Founded in 2019, MedHyve aims to make quality medical supplies and equipment accessible to more medical institutions. The marketplace is fitted with intelligent procurement tools and dashboards. The goal is to make purchasing medical supplies cheaper and easier for hospitals especially those in the provinces.

Also Read: Monde Nissin CEO backs Foxmont Capital’s initial close of US$20M Fund II

“The investment will allow us to reach more medical institutions and provide them with the help they need to serve their communities,” Nigel Lirio, Co-Founder and CEO of MedHyve said.

MedHyve currently carries over 100 suppliers and 5,000 products online, serving 600+ hospitals and clinics across the Philippines. 

Digital technology has disrupted many industries, and healthcare is no exception. The COVID-19 pandemic further emphasized this, accelerating the pace of technology adaptation across the industry. With the help of this funding, MedHyve will continue to work hard to realise its goal of revolutionising healthcare through technology-powered innovations.

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Ready to meet new startups to invest in? We have more than hundreds of startups ready to connect with potential investors on our platform. Create or claim your Investor profile today and turn on e27 Connect to receive requests and fundraising information from them.

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Since its inception, e27 has tried to nurture this one, big happy community. Empowering entrepreneurs with the tools to build and grow their companies is both mission and ethos; the very reason that this platform exists. Everything we do, whether online or offline, ties back to this.

While we do our best to bring you the latest updates, views from KOLs in the ecosystem, learning guides and resources and even live interactions with investors and unicorn leaders; we learnt there was nothing more enriching and heartwarming than learning from each other.

And that is why we have been running the e27 Contributor Programme for five+ years now. Simply put, the Contributor Programme is where you voice your views. Learn about our motivation and why we are running this programme.

This is your one-stop guide to learn more about the programme, how to join the bandwagon and nurture that writer in you. If you don’t have a natural flair for writing, don’t worry … simply bring your opinion and we will bring out the writer in you.

What is thought leadership and who is it for

Misunderstood as a marketing strategy; thought leadership effects are longer lasting. It not only enhances your personal brand reputation but also helps build decision-makers’ trust, facilitate networking, and help close business deals or strategic partnerships for your organisation too.

Anyone can become a thought leader and benefit from the added visibility. All you need are passion, expertise, and honesty, says Muara Makarim, who has helped startups such as Shopee and Circles.Life at their thought leadership game.

Learn her secret recipe to thought leadership via this short video guide:

Writing great content used to be privy to grammar nazis and literature lovers, but in the digital era, almost anyone with an idea, opinion, comment or observation can write a good thought leadership piece with some guidance and knowing the right tools to leverage.

You want to be a thought leader but you are not a professional writer? This article is for you if you are an expert in a given field and keen on leveraging your thought leadership for better brand positioning but are hesitant about your writing skills.

Using the e27 Contributor Programme

Now that you know what thought leadership really is, how it can help you and your brand and how you can use writing to establish your thought leadership, it’s time to know where. The short answer is e27 Contributor Programme. Reach out to e27’s over 2M+ readers and 50k+ newsletter subscribers by using the e27 editor to publish thought leadership articles.

Writing and getting published doesn’t necessarily have to be a complicated drill. Leveraging technology, the e27 platform makes it extremely simple for anyone with authentic, original and relevant content to become a thought leader in just a few simple steps. We have a simple 3-step process to help you publish your own articles: write and submit, get curated and get published.

Meet the popular thought leaders

We have a growing army of e27 contributors who stepped up and shared their stories, their pain points, their best practices, their sympathy, their views–– their voices. In 2020 alone, we saw 800+ new members join the e27 Contributor Community. And it expanded to include investors, VCs, corporate executives, government officials, academics in addition to the core group of startup founders.

Get inspired by the first edition of e27 Voices– our annual hall of fame to commemorate thought leaders in the tech startup ecosystem who have used the Contributor Programme to share their views with the tech startup community.

If you are keen but still have queries, check out our FAQ and submission guidelines. If you have a topic in mind that you would like to write about but need some help with, send us your pitch.

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Image credit: illiabondar

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