Entrepreneur Association of Tokyo
Speaker - Hitoshi Suga, FoodX Globe

June 07, 2005 - Panel Speaker
July 05 2004 - Mr. Hitoshi Suga - Vice Chairman and Board Member, Tully's Coffee Japan Co., Ltd./FoodX Globe Co., Ltd.

Profile
Mr.Suga was Founder, President & Chief Executive Officer of MVC Corporation for about 4 years, a Mitsui Group's global venture capital/private equity investment arm based in Tokyo, Japan, founded in 1996, which was then 62% owned by Mitsui & Co., Ltd., a giant Japanese trading company. He had spent his entire career for more than 24 years at Mitsui initially at its Food Business Unit, then subsequently founded its Private Equity Unit within its Corporate Planning Divisions both in New York and Tokyo.

After MVC and Misui, Mr. Suga has assumed various top executive positions such as President & CEO of DEFTA Corporation, a U.S. based high-technology venture capital��fs Japanese arm, and UBS Capital Japan as its Partner, Head of Japan, and Managing Director, UBS Warburg (Japan) Limited, being responsible for the start-up of UBS Capital Japan, and concurrently serving as a member of its Japan Management Committee.

Born in Tokyo in 1952, Mr.Suga obtained his BA in Political Science from School of Political Science & Economics, Waseda University, Tokyo and an MBA degree from Harvard Business School. He joined Mitsui & Co., Ltd. in 1976 and since 1985, has worked at various private equity departments of the Corporate Planning Divisions of Mitsui both in New York and Tokyo, successfully initiating, negotiating and closing its first U.S. venture capital participation, LBO finances, and extensive cross border mergers & acquisitions for Mitsui and its clients totaling more than US$1billion for 11 years prior to heading MVC Corporation.

While at MVC, Mr. Suga has served as board members of several of MVC's portfolio companies, many of which have successfully gone public . Some of the most successful investments he has made include Tully's Coffee Japan, (Now re-named Food-X Globe Inc.) for which Mr. Suga has acted as its angel investor, mentor, and still is Vice Chairman and a board member.

In addition to Tully's Coffee Japan, he presently holds board seats of 2 other fast-growing ventures, and is Special Advisor for President for 2 emerging companies, and a member of the Investment Committee of AC Capital, a middle-sized buyout/venture investment fund in Tokyo.

He also started popular Marunouchi Kigyou Juku (after-5 Entrepreneur School) as its School Master in January 2004 on a weekly-basis with Odyssey Communications Inc. and sponsorship by Mitsubishi Real Estate, in order to promote entrepreneurial and venture spirits and professional trainings toward young aspiring professionals in Japan.

Mr.Suga is a co-author of several books on venture capital and private equity published by Nikkei and others , has done numerous lectures on the topic in Japan. He lives in Segaya, Tokyo, and married with two children.