This week, as part of our Women in Japan Series, we introduce you to three female entrepreneurs who have successfully forged ahead in the business world by defining their own terms.
Credit: Flickr (M. Roeseler)
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s “womenomics” scheme aims to get more women into the workforce in order to combat the shrinking and aging population and help spur the Japanese economy. While I believe women can save Japan, I don’t think it’ll be through womenomics. As any Japanese woman can tell you, it’s not as easy as it should be for females to work full-time in this country. In the Japanese business world, companies are loath to offer working conditions that males and females alike enjoy in other developed countries, such as reasonable work hours (40 hours a week with optional overtime), work sharing, flexitime and working from home. Whereas in the West the attitude is that as long as you get your work done on time, it doesn’t matter how you do it, in Japan emphasis is more on the hours put in at the office to show your loyalty to the company. Add to that additional cultural biases against gender, age, experience and returning to work after raising children, and you have a recipe for “eternal housewife.”
Clearly, the problem is deeper than merely hiring more women, or adding more day care centers, both actions Abe is pushing. But the good news is that there is a group of women who are beating the system, and who have been for some time now.
This week, as part of our Women in Japan Series, we introduce you to three female entrepreneurs who have successfully forged ahead in the business world by defining their own terms. They can support themselves financially, are able to live more freely, have time for their children and families, and work fewer hours than they’d have to in the corporate world. And the best thing about it? They’re regular women, just like you, me, or your partner. Drum roll please…
1. Mari Tobita
Mari found her knack in online sales even before she graduated from high school. “I went to the U.S for the first time when I was in high school, and I bought some clothes for myself. But the sizes didn’t fit, so I tried to sell them on online auctions in Japan,” she tells RocketNews24 in an online interview. At first, Mari was surprised at how quickly the items sold, indicating there was an untapped market. She also noticed that many brands such as Tommy Hilfiger and Ralph Lauren were cheaper in the U.S. She decided to try to import these items and sell them online in Japan. Mari admits that her business sense probably comes from her family, who are mostly business people. But Mari’s reasons for starting her own business go deeper.
“I always thought it was unfair that females had to quit their jobs when they get married or become pregnant, even when they are making a good income or are very talented. I thought that if I can sell products online, then I don’t have to work for other people.” By the time Mari graduated from high school, she was doing well enough that she didn’t need a part-time job.
Mari seems very perceptive at uncovering new niches. She eventually settled on selling shoes because not only did she herself find it hard to find shoes that fit her tiny feet, but she realized her foreign friends living in Japan couldn’t find shoes big enough for theirs. In addition, Mari saw another niche that no one was serving yet: the transgender market.
She opened her website, “912Shop,” (pronounced “nine-twelve shop”) in 2010. “This is my fifth year doing this, and my twelfth year doing online business, and it’s always been sustainable, even with economic ups and downs.” When I asked her what the hardest thing was being a woman entrepreneur, she said, “Often men assume they are smarter than you or have more experience, even when you have been doing this business for much longer, or even when you know your market better.”
“I’ve never liked the idea of working at a big company, dealing with the morning and evening commutes or having to wear a suit. Also, as a woman, this way I don’t have to try to climb the corporate ladder to make a decent income. I also love the fact that even when I am overseas, I can still run my business. I don’t have to work a lot of hours to get things done. I’m very satisfied with what I do.”
Read more at RocketNews24.