"Overseas exhibitions are only for people who can speak English, have funds, and have connections."
If you think that, I have a story I want you to read.
Last year, our company generated over 17 million yen in overseas business through a Chinese exhibition.
https://x.com/columbus_ceo/status/2019678626908938502
https://x.com/columbus_ceo/status/2084129552813666746
All you need is the cost of one trip (50,000 yen round trip) and an interpreter fee of 10,000 yen per day.
English skills are not required. The team member who generated 17 million yen in the first month at our company cannot speak English at all.
In this article, I will write the entire procedure. Why overseas exhibitions, what to do on-site, how much the cost actually is, and how to turn it into sales after securing the rights.
I wrote this specifically to be useful for:
**・Those who want to start a new business but don't know where to begin
・Advertising, marketing, and affiliate companies that have the power to sell but no products of their own
・Companies that want to engage in global management but have no means to do so**
Overseas exhibitions are clearly a "treasure trove"
In mid-October, large-scale exhibitions are concentrated in Hong Kong.
Among them, I have two favorite major exhibitions.
I'll just mention the scale. One has over 4,000 exhibition booths. The floor area exceeds 70,000 square meters.
There are many other large exhibitions in Hong Kong, but these two are outstanding.
Hit brands are lying around everywhere.
What is lined up here are products that are already selling locally. The packaging, manuals, reviews, and video materials are all ready. The only thing not yet decided is who will sell them in Japan, and the person in charge is standing right there at the booth.
I'll show you why it's a "treasure trove" with simple math
When wooing overseas manufacturers online, our actual numbers are as follows:
・The reply rate for business negotiations is 10-20%
・Reaching an exclusive contract because conditions match happens for 2-3 companies out of 100
・In other words, you need a list of 30-50 companies to secure one brand
You create a list, send English emails, wait for replies, and communicate across time zones. This takes months.
On the other hand, there are over 4,000 booths at the venue I mentioned earlier.
4,000 wideth 50 = 80.
By simple calculation, a population of 80 brands is standing inside one building.
Moreover, every company has brought samples. The person in charge is standing there. They are there on the premise that it's okay to talk to them.
A population that takes months to build via email can be obtained in a few days by walking.
The cost is just one trip
This is the part I wanted to write about most.
Overseas exhibitions are not an expensive purchase.
・Travel expenses: No different from a regular trip to Hong Kong. You arrive in a few hours from Japan.
・Interpreter: You can hire one for about 10,000 yen a day.
・Admission: Many can be entered with pre-registration.
And here is what is often overlooked:
There are cases where subsidies and grants from local governments or support organizations can be used for overseas expansion and exhibition inspections. Conditions vary by region and fiscal year, so I can't say for sure, but too many companies are going entirely out of pocket without checking.
Please check your local government's systems once.
Let's also do the math on the return side.
When we take exclusivity, we set the cost at 30% of the selling price. That's a 70% gross profit.
If sales are 17 million yen in the first month, the gross profit is about 11.9 million yen.
From the cost of one trip and a 10,000 yen interpreter fee, there is only the distance to a gross profit of 11.9 million yen.
Development cost: 0 yen. Advance payment for inventory: 0 yen.
It's all just math.
However, interpreter quality "varies"
I'll be honest.
You can hire an interpreter for 10,000 yen a day. However, there are variations in quality.
This is the pitfall; for negotiation interpreting, just being able to translate is not enough.
・Can they ask "Can you give us exclusivity?" at the beginning in a way that doesn't cause offense?
・Do they not miss the timing to enter the discussion about wholesale prices?
・When the other party is vague, can they press the point without letting it slide?
・Can they prevent us from being forced into unfavorable conditions on the spot?
This is not about language ability, but business negotiation experience.
A regular interpreter will translate what is said accurately. But they won't make judgments like "If I ask that now, the other party will pull back" or "This is where we should push."
That's why I handle this part myself or with a trusted partner.
What you really need is not English skills
It's what to ask and in what order.
・Is there already an agent in Japan?
・Can you give exclusivity, and what are the conditions?
・Wholesale price and lot size
・Production system and lead time
・Failure rate and how to handle warranties
It's a process of checking these off in order.
Language can be outsourced, but this sequence cannot.
Conversely, if you have the sequence, you can secure rights even if you can't speak English. That was the case with our member.
Actually, Japanese exhibitions are also hot
For those who feel "going overseas suddenly is a high hurdle."
I'll mention beforehand that Japanese exhibitions are also sufficiently hot.
At Japanese exhibitions, many overseas manufacturers who are willing to pay to enter the Japanese market are coming.
If you think about it, it's natural; they are paying exhibition fees, travel expenses, and bringing employees all the way to Japan. They have already invested hundreds of thousands of yen as a declaration of their intent to sell in Japan.
Moreover, Japanese exhibitions usually have Japanese interpreters stationed there. It doesn't even cost an interpreter fee. Many are free to enter.
In fact, an overseas manufacturer's business we transferred previously was one we got from a manufacturer that had come to a Japanese exhibition.
You can go that far even at the entrance level in Japan.
That said, to be honest, the population size is different. Overseas manufacturers coming to Japanese exhibitions are only "companies that have the surplus energy to come to Japan." At the Hong Kong venue, there are dozens of times more lined up.
The entrance is Japan, the main target is overseas. This sequence is the most fail-proof.
There are only 4 things to do at an exhibition
Some people avoid it using the term "door-to-door sales," but if you break down the structure, there's no reason not to do it.
① Go to where people are gathered
Go yourself to a place where potential partners are already gathered.
② Get opinions from various angles
Talking to dozens of companies in one day helps you understand where the weaknesses in your proposal are.
③ If it's decided, great. Even if not, you get improvement points for free
This is effective. You don't lose even if you miss. The reason you were rejected becomes material for your next proposal.
④ From there, run online ads
Since you create ads using words picked up on-site, they hit the mark. The accuracy is different from copy thought up at a desk.
And offline, passion works better than track records.
Rather than talking about "our annual turnover is X billion," it's about whether you can say to their face, "I want to spread this product in Japan." The part that can never be conveyed via email works here.
The value of being able to touch the sample on the spot
When I was a student, I stocked Chinese products without checking the samples and refunded the entire 20 million yen that had already been sold.
I called each customer one by one, crying, while lying on a bench press at a local gym.
This is what happens when you skip sample confirmation.
At an exhibition, the actual product is right there. You can touch it with your hands, check the texture, and verify the operation. You can crush the future of making refund calls right then and there.
Judging by photos and spec sheets versus judging by holding it in your hand makes a completely different accident rate.
Products that cannot be sold by hand have no product power to begin with
There is another reason why I am particular about being on-site.
All the brands that grew to the scale of tens of millions of yen in our company started from hand-selling at campsites or exhibitions.
It's not a talk about grit, but about judgment.
Products that don't sell on the spot have no product power to begin with.
If there is a customer in front of you, you show the actual product, you can explain it, and it still doesn't sell, it won't sell no matter how much you run ads.
An exhibition is a place for sourcing, and at the same time, a place to judge the pass/fail of a product.
How to turn it into sales after securing the rights
When you secure exclusive distribution rights, four things happen simultaneously:
① Development costs become 0 yen
The product is already finished. With OEM (manufacturing your own brand at a factory), development costs tens of millions of yen and takes six months.
② Pricing becomes free
Since only you can sell it, you can sell it for whatever price you want. That's why a 30% cost ratio works.
③ You can decide the delivery date yourself
Other companies cannot list it on Amazon or Rakuten from the side. It can only be bought from your site.
④ You can stock after selling
As a result of ③, pre-order sales work. Inventory risk becomes almost zero.
And finally, one more thing. You can sell the license itself.
Yogibo did not originate in Japan either. It was an American product, and one Japanese company secured the general agency contract in 2014. From there, it exceeded 20 billion yen in 8 years. Kleiner, which Gen Z drinks, was passed to GENDA for 4 billion yen including the rights.
Once you get past the point of securing the rights, everything else follows this structure.
Still, many people don't go
It's strangely quiet; people don't go.
I know why. Because it's a hassle.
Booking flights, clearing your schedule, walking around all day, and talking to strangers. Using AI for form-based sales looks much easier.
But I think it's the opposite. Precisely because anyone can send emails with AI, the value of people who come to meet in person has increased.
From an overseas manufacturer's perspective, the impact of someone coming all the way from Japan and saying to their face, "I want to spread your product in Japan," is incomparable to the 100th email arriving in their inbox.
Because it's unglamorous, it's still open.
I will also accompany you in September and October
I know the hurdle is high if you go alone.
・Which hall should I start from?
・Which booth should I talk to?
・What should I ask and in what order?
・How far should I finalize conditions on the spot?
・How should I use the interpreter?
So, I will go with you.
【Entrance】 Early September ・ Tokyo
It's okay to start from here. It's a large-scale exhibition with free entry, and overseas companies are also coming. If going to Hong Kong suddenly is a high hurdle, please get a feel for it here.
【Main Target】 Mid-October ・ Hong Kong
These are my two favorite major exhibitions. This will be the main event this time.
I will also accompany you. I will also do the negotiation interpreting. (There are also trusted partner companies)
As I wrote earlier, interpreter quality varies. I or a trusted partner will handle that part. We won't just translate; we will include judgments on where to push and where to pull.
We will go around the venue together, and it's a practice of securing overseas manufacturers on the spot. It's not an information session or a tour. It will be in a form where business cards increase and negotiations start on that very day.
Regarding the schedule, participating for just a few days during the October session is fine. It's okay if you can't clear your full schedule.
The slots are limited to 10 companies.
Since I will be interpreting for each company one by one, I physically cannot handle more than this.
It's not just products you can pick up at exhibitions
Contact with overseas manufacturers is not just about exclusive distribution rights.
Support for entering the Japanese market, sales channel development, hiring local influencers, and ad management. These directly become orders in foreign currency.
I myself have received 3 million yen in foreign currency to provide system support within Japan.
You go intending to source products, but you come back having received orders for work. This normally happens at overseas exhibitions.
For companies doing contract work or those with tools, the same venue can be used.
Information
If you are interested in the exhibition, please send "Exhibition" to the official LINE.
I will send details for September (Tokyo) and October (Hong Kong), how to move on the day, and participation conditions. Slots are limited to 10 companies, so please contact me early if you are interested.
For other consultations, please send "Individual Consultation."
I will diagnose overseas brands, categories, and countries that suit you, and create a roadmap to generating sales. I will handle it directly. It's free.
Note that for support in the form of partnership, we limit acceptance to 2 companies per industry and 2 companies per category per month. This is to ensure that those who enter first will definitely win. If you just want to check the availability of slots, you can also send "Individual Consultation" and I will answer.
Official LINE:
I have summarized the overall picture of this model in a 16-minute YouTube video. I answer everything while taking questions, including the mechanism, merits, and scope of support, so if you find video faster than text, please watch here ↓
Go to Hong Kong for the same number of days and the same cost as a trip.
The only difference is walking the venue and handing out business cards before coming back.
With just that, you gain one more in-house brand.
Which overseas brand's "Japan representative" will you become?
