MESSAGE
VISION
VISION
Our Vision for the Future
Japan possesses remarkable services and technologies. However, the current economy no longer allows them to be used to their full potential.
No matter how advanced a technology or service may be, Japan's declining birthrate means there are fewer and fewer people at home to benefit from it. And yet there are numerous countries around the world that need exactly this kind of content.
What I feel whenever I travel abroad is that there are still many countries in need of Japanese content.
In the Philippines, where 10 Fields Factory has a local subsidiary, financial resources and content are not yet abundant. However, there are many people there with the passion and determination to see things through. By bringing Japanese technology and content to them, we can help them succeed.
However, there is a language barrier. As long as this barrier exists, it is not easy for Japanese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to expand overseas, or for foreign companies to enter the Japanese market. While major corporations may overcome this barrier, SMEs struggle to spread their wings globally. I wanted to change this situation.
10 Fields Factory has expanded into many businesses over the years. Now, by becoming a bridge between Japan and the world, we will spread high-quality Japanese content overseas.
Furthermore, the excellent services and technologies of SMEs are in decline due to a lack of sales knowledge or the means to sell them.
That is why I decided to nurture business leaders and support SMEs.
By dispatching division managers who have grown into true business leaders, we will bring the services of Japan's SMEs to the world.
A bridge between Japan and the world — this is our vision for the future.
BACKGROUND
BACKGROUND
The Story Behind Our Many Divisions
From the very start of my entrepreneurial journey, I wanted to contribute to society across many different fields.
After eighteen years in the same industry, all sorts of relationships and entanglements naturally build up. Moving into a different market means you can create the services customers truly need from scratch, and take on the many things others may want to do but cannot. Precisely because you have nothing to protect, so much more becomes possible — that is what I felt. Additionally, transferring the knowledge and techniques cultivated in one field to other areas enables us to differentiate our services from competitors. These are some of the reasons why we expanded our businesses.
Incidentally, my very first business model was supporting the owners of other SMEs. It seemed wasteful that despite creating excellent products and services, they struggled to deliver them simply because they did not know how to sell. Hence, I set out to act as their sales representative. Sales was my strength and inquiries poured in — but this created a new problem: I could no longer handle everything with my own two hands.
To address this, I moved the sales agency work onto a website, where demand grew even further. From there, our web division was established, and step by step the company began to develop.
Another reason for expanding our divisions was our staff.
One year-end, after the company had grown to a certain size and sales were rising, we held a party and invited our staff's families — and more family members gathered than we had employees. What struck me then was the question of whether they could all lead prosperous lives five or ten years down the road. As things stood, probably not. It was a question of salaries.
A company must keep growing in order to keep paying its people. That was the first time I truly understood this.
I wanted our staff to generate the kind of sales I did, so that they and their families could lead prosperous lives. To achieve that, why not build a new organization under each of them and have them stand at its head? With that thought, I launched new divisions one after another, raising their income and their standing. Through this, the company grew larger still.
Behind the growth of 10 Fields Factory is far more than my own efforts. It was made possible by the staff who believed in me, gathered around our philosophy, and supported me as true colleagues.
Continuing to meet our customers' expectations together with them — that, I believe, is the greatest secret of our growth.
CHALLENGE
CHALLENGE
Toward a Public Listing
Today, 10 Fields Factory is aiming for a public listing overseas in order to focus even more on growth.
Japan has many excellent companies, and because its exchanges trade in high-quality stocks, competition is extremely fierce. Venture companies must therefore keep taking on challenges without precedent.
Looking overseas, however, that kind of competition does not exist, and foreign-owned companies are numerous. A market is, in the end, simply an exchange where stocks are traded.
Furthermore, no Japanese venture company has yet led the way overseas. Precisely because there is no precedent, we choose to be the first. If we lead, other companies will naturally follow, and Japan's economy will become better for it.
Through business, I want to bring happiness to our staff, to Japan's economy, and to people around the world.
With that conviction at its core, 10 Fields Factory will continue to grow.
10 Fields Factory Co., Ltd.
Hiroshi Ichikawa, President & CEO
PROFILE
PROFILE
Hiroshi Ichikawa
Born in Hiroshima Prefecture. Entered the Faculty of Economics at Hiroshima University in 1991, where his experience serving as the leader of a student organization outside the university inspired him to become an entrepreneur. After graduating from the Faculty of Economics in 1995, he joined Ajinomoto Co., Inc. in April of that year. Having mastered the craft of sales as a sales team leader, he left Ajinomoto in May 2002 and founded 10 Fields Factory in June 2002. Beginning with a rental server business launched in August 2002, he went on to start a darts sales and rental business, and incorporated 10 Fields Factory as a company in 2007. He has since entered a wide range of industries, including nail salons, home renovation, smart energy, goat rental, cafes, and real estate. With "Challenge" and "Trust" as his motto, he is now aiming for further expansion overseas.
In August 2021, he published his first book, "Abandon Your Main Business Now: Multifaceted Management for Surviving Post-COVID" (PHP Institute).
