Jamaica/Japan Connections

[Tropicana]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

There is no such thing as the land of milk and honey. There is no such thing as perfection. Never will be. But there has got to be an alternative to the cap in hand beg de Americans approach. I'll tell you one thing. No Japanese person has ever called me [censored], shuned or humiliated me. Americans, Canadians....now that's a whole other story. Are you going to tell me THEY bargain in good faith with other nations? I think not.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">they show u juss wat they want u to see in all things, an if u slip u tek dem at face value....yep, brilliant wid technology an coopting, but ongle on their terms </div></div>

Are the Americans and Canadians any different? Can we take THEM at face value? Are they displaying technological brilliance? All I know is that when I go to Asia I see certain technology and it is quite a while before it reaches the shores of North America.

Canada is a beaut. They are happy to have Jamaicans come to Canada and do the dutty, low paying jobs THEY don't want to do. Try dealing with them as an equal or better yet superior and they don't like it if you're Black. Look at this article:

http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20070605/business/business3.html

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Canada recruits more Jamaicans
published: Tuesday | June 5, 2007

Dionne Rose, Staff Reporter

Hundreds of prospective HEART Trust/NTA trainees yesterday flocked the Ministry of Labour's overseas employment office on East Street in Kingston in the hope of being among the 150 to be selected to work in British Columbia in Canada, in the construction industry.

The applicants are being recruited under a new initiative being spearheaded by the ministry in collaboration with the Okanagan College and the Central Okanagan Regional District Economic Development Commission in Canada.

Good partnership

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Labour, Alwin McIntosh, told The Gleaner yesterday that five employers were in the island conducting interviews yesterday and today to select the best applicants for the jobs available.

"This seems to be a potentially good partnership because we are starting out with 150 workers, but these are low-skilled persons in carpentry and masonry," he explained. "By the end of the year, we expect the figure to move up to 500."

Mr. McIntosh explained that this new initiative would be integrated in the Ministry's Overseas Employment Programme. He said the group of Canadians had visited the island in April and held discussions with Labour Minister Derrick Kellier about the recruitment.

"The minister will be visiting British Columbia shortly to explore possibilities for greater opportunities for the Jamaican workers," he added.

One of the employers, Terry Brown of Greyback Construction Ltd., told The Gleaner that there is currently a shortage of skilled labourers in Canada.

"For all those Canadians who would like to retire in the next decade, we don't have enough skilled workers to fill the gap that we are going to create, so we are looking abroad globally for workers to support our construction industry."

He said his company was looking to recruit 40 skilled workers in masonry, finished carpentry, among other areas. So far, he said, he was pleased with the applicants interviewed.

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And you can bet when the children of these Jamaican immigrants get an education are ready to move into professional and managerial positions and compete with THEIR children...dem naw go like i'. Trust me, I know.

At least when the Japanese recruit (and they are recognizing the need for more diversity in their workforce) they are looking for SKILLED labour. Do you know who the president of Hitachi Canada is? Let me leave it to you and others on the board to find out and come back and tell me.

Bottom line is, as Jamaicans, we need to keep our options open and we would do well to forge stronger alliances with other areas of the world that are doing well....Japan, UAE, and Singapore come immediately to mind. As I speak with Black people working in some of these countries, they don't sound unhappy. Certainly, they have not encoutered perfect societies but there doesn't seem to be an automatic you're Black stay back mindset.

We are WAY too dependent on the Americans right now both in terms of exports and tourism. This is not a good thing and leaves us vulnerable. We need to explore our options, forge new alliances and strength some of our developing alliances. If the pre-requisite is that these countries have to be perfect before we will deal with them....well may as well wait until HELL freezes over.

[Hopyoneson]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

To get a foothold into the country you need a Japanese connect and alot of thier construction, gambling ie Pachinko and vending business are controlled by the Yaks or Yakuza, they usually hire the africans as the muscle to the clubs that are quite ironic for Japanese only. When dealing with Japan all is not what it first appears, there are many cultural nuances that would throw you for a loop and being a woman it becomes even more harder because it is a male dominated society. Simple question for you Trop, you are invited to dinner with you future business partners there are several men in the group, your drinks arrived unpoured, who does the pouring and who drinks first, if your drink is poured for you what is the proper protocol to do. And this is just beer, when you ready to discuss business in Japan we can chat, this phase you going through we all expereince it then we see the real under belly of Japan and if you dont have someone showing you the ropes you lost big time. Thats why many people fail in Japan over the long term. Time really longer than rope over there.

[Tropicana]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

I have Japanese and Japanese Canadian friends so I know that the protocol and etiquette are VERY complex. I would not even PRETEND to know anything more than some of the basics. If someone is really serious about doing business with them, protocol training is a must. Even my friends who are Japanese Canadian (3rd generation) are at a loss when it comes to the complexities.

Doesn't mean we remain forever dependent on the Americans and fail to explore other options do we? Jamaica is already doing some business with the Japanese. They seem to like us and there may be potential for more as time goes on.

[Diplomat]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

Hey Tropi, long time we haven't crossed paths, but very interesting thread. A few random thoughts crossed my mind after reading the article with the extract below:

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">...as Jamaicans, we need to keep our options open and we would do well to forge stronger alliances with other areas of the world that are doing well....Japan, UAE, and Singapore come immediately to mind. As I speak with Black people working in some of these countries, they don't sound unhappy. Certainly, they have not encoutered perfect societies but there doesn't seem to be an automatic you're Black stay back mindset.</div></div>

In principle I agree with you, but don't you think that the economics, i.e. economies of scale, do play a large role in what Jamaican businesses do, and who they do business with? For example, in North America (USA & Canada) there is access to approximately 350 million people, the third largest population trailing only China and India. From a business perspective, it is very tempting for the majority of businesses, who are not global in scope, to concentrate their efforts in that market. Sure there is protectionism and all the other market forces to deal with, but for the most part, it works.

Historically, Asia is not so much of an open market as we often think, and the auto industry is an excellent example of that. Granted, I believe every country serves its own interests first, and therefore I do not think for one moment that there will be fairness in imports versus exports. In as much as Jamaica need to continue to seek new trading partners, that does not mean the other side will roll out the red carpet and make that easy. Sure, it is great that the Japanese love our coffee, our music, and whatever else, but how much outside of that will they allow in compared to how much of their stuff goes to JA? The challenge is to find out what else they need that we can offer at a competitive price. I'm tempted to think that maybe some of the private sector businesses have looked at it and, after doing the cost/benefit analysis, figured it not to be really financially viable for their particular products.

[jah_yout]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

very interesting thread...
i really do see your point...in the sense that blacks need to globalize their thinking...
look at how the chinese opererate...i don't think there's a place on earth they haven't ventured...

we gotta expand our horizons [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/70409-waytogo.gif[/img]

[Hopyoneson]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: jah yout</div><div class="ubbcode-body">very interesting thread...
i really do see your point...in the sense that blacks need to globalize their thinking...
look at how the chinese opererate...i don't think there's a place on earth they haven't ventured...

we gotta expand our horizons [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/70409-waytogo.gif[/img] </div></div>

There are more africans and Jamaicans owning business in Japan than Trops post would lead you to belive, I even ate at this Jamaican guys restaurant in Kobe. Recently there was a letter in the gleaner with a woman in Osaka speaking about the same thing Tropicana is stating, all I am saying is this has been tried and attempted before and to run into Japan without understanding the culture will leave you broke and dis-illusioned. Ask some of our DJ's who went there with promise of riches and got short changed, you know that they copy the reggae concept so much that they now have reggae stage shows and wont ...thats right wont invite Jamaican artist to play. Anyway since mi no know nothing mi a stop talk.

[evanovitch]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

Kgn 20, Tropi juss discova ovah deh,u haffi see wid har...di second wave a come which is where she comes een

[Hopyoneson]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: evanovitch</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Kgn 20, Tropi juss discova ovah deh,u haffi see wid har...di second wave a come which is where she comes een

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I guess that is the case, mi not discouraging nobody but visit and live and do business a two different thing, and in the Japanese dem love copy american tings so much that if your product is a hit in the USA chances are they will want to get it also.

[Tropicana]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> There are more africans and Jamaicans owning business in Japan than Trops post would lead you to belive,</div></div>

Lead us to believe? [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/confused.gif[/img] I didn't comment specifically on the number of Black businesses in Japan one way or another. I have no knowledge of this. Quite the contrary, the whole purpose of this thread is to show the number of links that already exist and highlight opportunities for more collaboration and exchange!!!

I posted some links to sites where Black people living and working in Tokyo exchange ideas and an example of one business. I have posted a NUMBER of examples of connections between Jamaica and Japan. I also stated that the Black people I have spoken to who have lived and worked there seem to be happy. Heck I didn't even mention the fact that on the way back from Tokyo, the flight attendant doing the announcements in Japanese was BLACK AND MALE!!! He has lived and worked in Tokyo for an engineering firm and LOVED it. He has been with Air Canada for 10 years. I even came across a Jamaican restaurant in Japan (I understand there are a number of them) but I haven't had a chance to post that information yet. How does this translate into leading people to believe that there are few businesses? [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/confused.gif[/img]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> Anyway since mi no know nothing mi a stop talk.
</div></div>

Now where the heck did THAT negative comment come from? The purpose of this thread is POSITIVE!!!!!! I want to promote information sharing and DIALOGUE. If you have information and expertise, please share it. We are all in this to learn together....at least this is MY intent.

[Tropicana]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: evanovitch</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Kgn 20, Tropi juss discova ovah deh,u haffi see wid har...di second wave a come which is where she comes een

</div></div>

I wouldn't call 7 1/2 years of doing business in Asia "just discovah".

This is the article I came across yesterday, when researching the bamboo thread actually:

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> Japanese Savor Big Bamboo’s Jamaican Dishes

Kerron Boothe landed in Japan with US$300, unsure of what he’d do after his funds dried up. No stranger to calamity, he concentrated on his IT studies being the first Jamaican to study at Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University. To stretch his wallet, he lived on campus, cooking for himself in the dorm kitchen. Smelling the aroma of Caribbean food, his floor mates were hypnotized. They quickly realized Boothe’s exotic culinary skill and invited him to cook with them.

“Actually I was cooking for them,” recalls Boothe, “but I didn’t mind cause I got to eat!”

That $300 was eroding quickly from Japan’s high cost of living, so Boothe tried to land a part-time job. With IT jobs scarce in that area, he applied for an English teaching job. One little kink, though Japanese view Jamaicans as speaking “Jamaican,” not real English, so he was turned down.

Undeterred, Boothe delved into cooking at community centres and festivals. Confident he could profit from his great sense of taste, he entered several venture capital competitions, but lost out to IT focused ideas.

Finally, he got his big break when the city of Beppu launched an international street, with government sponsored shops, owned and operated by foreigners. Boothe won a bid, and with the cash renovated his location. BiG BAMBOO Restaurant, operated by Boothe’s flagship brand Caribbean Flava Japan, opened its doors October 8th, 2005 with a staff of four and seating 33.

Boothe credits Abe Mari, a Japanese national, who helped him understand the way of doing business in Japan. “I could not have done as much as fast as I had done given my restrictions as a student and as a foreigner in that country. I say thanks to Abe for opening her heart and mind to Jamaican culture,” Boothe said.

BiG BAMBOO remains a haven for locals, university students and internationals visiting the city. The restaurant serves 100% Jamaican food, including jerk chicken and limited quantities of jerk pork. Other celebrated dishes include ackee and saltfish (Jamaica’s national dish), curried mutton, pumpkin soup and peppered shrimp.



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More

Anyway, as for the Jamaican restaurants, I don't have first hand knowledge of how they are doing and which are still operating but here are some examples. I think the first one is a credible source:

http://www.jamaicans.com/directory/index.php?cat=47 [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif[/img]

http://eatjamaican.com/Japan.html

[Tropicana]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

This is an article about what Evanovitch refers to as the first way and it highlights IMHO why diversification is SO important and overdepedence on the Americans is to be avoided. I remember the panic that set in among tourist boards in the Caribbean when the Americans announced the need for passports for Americans travelling. There were great fears that the tourist industry would be hard hit. Remember how hard hit we were after 9/11?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> As Americans Stay Home, Japanese Discover Jamaica



By HOWARD W. FRENCH,
Published: December 22, 1992
After decades of heavy reliance on the winter cravings of Americans for sun and sand, Jamaica, pushed by the persistently weak American economy, has begun a major restructuring of its travel business that is drawing thousands of tourists from new markets.

Frequently scheduled flights now link the island to South America via Colombia, and there are jam-packed charters from Italy, Germany and even Scandinavia. But nowhere have the efforts to diversify the country's pool of foreign guests paid off so well as with Japan. Despite having to travel two days to cover 8,020 miles from Tokyo to Kingston, Japanese visitors are now flocking to many of this country's finest hotels.

While much of Caribbean remains in the doldrums because of the slow growth of the American market, vacancies are rare here at the Half Moon Hotel, an elegantly understated luxury resort here that caters to these new guests. Two Japanese travel agencies have desks beside the finely manicured English-style garden adjacent to the lobby, busily booking free-spending guests for golf, horseback riding and guided shopping jaunts. Dinner by Candlelight

At night, the dinner scene is so busy that reservations often must be made two days in advance for a restaurant where Japanese patrons now make up as much as half of the clientele, read their specially printed menus by twinkling candlelight.

At the turn of the decade, indeed for many years, Americans accounted for 85 percent or more of Jamaica's visitors. But as Japanese, European and South American travelers have poured into the country and the American market has stagnated, visitors from the United States have come to account for only about 60 percent of Jamaica's tourist volume.

While visits from North America are now growing again at an annual rate of about 2 percent, Jamaica's new markets taken together are growing at a clip of 60 percent a year. Arrivals from Japan have risen more steeply than any other tourist market.

In 1988, only about 1,800 Japanese visited Jamaica, while more than 25,000 are expected this year, according to Raphael Barrett, chairman of the Jamaica Tourist Board. Last year, Jamaica received a total of about 800,000 overnight visits, plus about 500,000 cruise ship passengers, earning the country $764 million. For the coming tourism year, officials say they expect 1.5 million visitors to the island.

"We have just finished our best year ever, and there is no doubt but that reaching out to new markets has played a big part in that," said Butch Stewart, chairman of Sandals, one of Jamaica's leading resort chains, which has spent heavily to tap the emerging Latin American market.

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More

[Hopyoneson]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Boothe credits Abe Mari, a Japanese national, who helped him understand the way of doing business in Japan. “I could not have done as much as fast as I had done given my restrictions as a student and as a foreigner in that country. I say thanks to Abe for opening her heart and mind to Jamaican culture,” Boothe said</div></div>

I think this is the point evan and I were trying to make if you were not so defensive about positive thread you would have seen it clearly, no one not being negative we just refuse to be naive.

[Tropicana]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

NOW where I have disagreed with any of this? I am the one who agreed with you that the cultural nuances and etiquette are complex.

Kingston20, the negative comments, as stated earlier, were primarily in the bamboo and rice threads. I also notice a tendency when people propose constructive ideas on here for many to focus on why things can't or won't work rather how they CAN work. That is not being defensive, just calling it as I see it. I think it is holding us back as a people. As far as I can see, the only person being defensive in here is you and I am not sure why. Once again...the purpose is POSITIVE.....dialogue, sharing of information. Not sure where you are getting the idea that it is anything different. I will say once again, please share your knowledge and experience and contribute to the dialogue...thank you.

[Q3210]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

Else you 2 can jump in the mud-wrestling pit. [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/grin.gif[/img]

with Nunya and Derek.

[Hopyoneson]

Re: Jamaica/Japan Connections

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Tropicana</div><div class="ubbcode-body">NOW where I have disagreed with any of this. I am the one who agreed with you that the cultural nuances and etiquette are complex.

Kingston20, the negative comments, as stated earlier, were primarily in the bamboo and rice threads. I also notice a tendency when people propose constructive ideas on here for many to focus on why things can't or won't work rather how they CAN work. That is not being defensive, just calling it as I see it. I think it is holding us back as a people. As far as I can see, the only person being defensive in here is you and I am not sure why. Once again...the purpose is POSITIVE.....dialogue, sharing of information. Not sure where you are getting the idea that it is anything different. I will say once again, please share your knowledge and experience and contribute to the dialogue...thank you. </div></div>

I dont know what to think Trops, when I see words in bold orange several times normal size, to me that is shouting or when i see the over use of this !!!!!!.

Here is where I stand, from your earlier post you appear to imply that Jamaicans are not doing business in Japan, when I know of several and I had to deal with them on the corporate side myself, if you want to discuss constructively I suggest you forget what was said in those rice bamboo threads, I was not in them.

Some people as you state just like to talk fawt and add nothing and watch the cat fights if you are serious about this we can talk, I tried to talk to S82 in the past with her japan threads but it always end with her losing interest and me wasting my time.

But since this is a thread about doing business in Japan I have to also disclose the negatives I have learnt so you and anybody else reading dont make the same mistakes. Do you understand?