Entrepreneur Association of Tokyo
Featured Member - Eric Williams

Interview - May 2006

Eric Williams - REIA Yugen Kaisha
President & Founder

REIA Yugen Kaisha The word REIA comes from an acronym of Representatives of Exporters and Importers in Asia. The Japanese characters are “rei” from “reigi” meaning respect and “a” from “Asia”. We are a manufacturer’s representative for several US firms that are selling products through distributors in Asia. We also help manufacturer’s in Asia (mostly Japan) find distribution in the US and Europe. We act as an outsourced regional sales office for most of these companies. Our specialty is in the electronics manufacturing industry. The home office is here in Japan but we help these US manufacturers manage their independent distributors in Asia. Our primary function is to help increase sales through better communication both in speed and accuracy, in training the local sales forces in each country, and in helping with the sales and marketing strategy in each country.

1. When did you start your first business? What was it? What lessons did you take away from that experience?
My first business was REIA which I started nearly 3 years ago. I started out as a Kojin Jyugyo and then formed a formal Yugen Kaisha.

2. What are some of the challenges you have faced in starting your business and how did you overcome them?
I think the biggest challenge at first was figuring out how to transition from a company employee to an independent contractor and then to a company owner. There were and still are many facets to making the change. One was how to handle the visa issues. As second was how to handle the tax issues. A third was managing the cash and expenses. To overcome these challenges I sought out help. I attended Terrie Lloyd’s entrepreneur seminar and got the names of a very good accountant and immigration office in Tokyo. Managing cash and expenses is ongoing and in previous jobs I had the experience in dealing with these kinds of issues so cash and expenses were not nearly as difficult. The only difference was that the cash was mine and the expenses came directly out of the commissions that I was earning (and still earn).

3. How did you form your business? (Yugen Kaisha, Kabushiki   Kaisha, etc.) How long did the start-up process take?
I started out as a Kojin Jyugyo and then changed to a Yugen Kaisha once I settled into the business. That was a very smooth process because the accountant I was using provided the service for me. He worked with a friend of his who was a scrivener specializing in this kind of paperwork and so for a fee I just had them handle all the details. Once I decided to switch from a Kojin Jyugyo I think it took about 1-2 months. But that was only because I was not in a big hurry. The business was already there. Transitioning it from being and independent contractor to a Yugen Kaisha was just a matter of filing all the paperwork and paying the fees.

4. Where do you see your business in 5 years?
I see two scenarios for my current business. One would be that one or our current clients wants to open an office locally. This would mean either the loss of that portion of the business or that they would want to take over or acquire REIA as their sales office. A second would be that we continue to expand and hire more local sales people to cover Asia. One way or the other, in 5 years I want to be doing a lot less traveling that I am currently doing. I am out on the road about 50% of the time.

5. Do you see yourself as an entrepreneur? Why?
I suppose. I have not really taken the time to think about it. When I grew unhappy with working as an employee at my last formal job here in Japan, I sent an e-mail to my two mentors in business. They happened to have an opportunity at that time to start what has become REIA. I think since I have started my own business and I take pride in what it has become makes me an entrepreneur. But again, I have never really thought about it too much. At the time, all I knew was that I wanted to continue to stay in Japan and I needed to find a way to make that happen.

6. What is your definition of an entrepreneur?
I would say an entrepreneur is anyone that is foolish enough to start and run their own business. The business can be big or small, simple or complex. But you have to have the willingness to do it and keep pushing forward regardless of the inevitable setbacks.

7. What piece of advice would you give to a person wanting to start his or her own business in Japan?
There are plenty of challenges in Japan for anyone starting a business here. There are also plenty of people willing to help out and resources that you can go to for help. Start networking and be tenacious.

8. Can you recommend any resources such as books, websites, or support centers for entrepreneurs in Japan?
Terrie Lloyd’s Entrepreneur Seminar worked for me. It was simple, short and contained enough information to get started. Also, this is where I met my current accountant. He is a guy that I have enjoyed working with very much.

9. Who are your mentors in business?
Our first and largest customer is a company that manufacturers tools for electronic production assembly. The two owners that started this company are my mentors and they are the ones that put me into this business. They needed help in selling in Asia and I had a lot of experience in both the market and the sales channels here. I was actually an employee of this company when I was finishing graduate school. They were a $3 milllion USD company at that time (about 20 years ago) and have grown to about $30 million in sales since that time.

10. What makes you happy?
My wife and our house are my two greatest pleasures. We bought the house in Chiba near the airport but far enough away that we cannot hear it. It is a traditional Japanese style that has been neglected for the past 3-4 years. We spend our weekends there and will be moving into it in March next year. There is an office on the property which needs some work before I can move the company there. But going there and pulling weeds and fixing it up provide me with much needed time away from work. Developing sales is fun but much of the work takes time to develop. When you pull weeds and clean up a house the results are immediate. Doing it with my wife provides us with a new dimension on relationship management.