Meet Yumiko, the publisher
I am Yumiko Horie, the publisher of Small Business Japan. Let me tell you about my journey to starting the journal, including my journalism background and business.
An Ibaraki-born Tokyoite, I was raised in the Showa era, which ended in 1989 when I was a teenager. I spent the first 12 years of my career as a newspaper journalist at the Yomiuri, a leading Japanese newspaper. After that, I worked for the non-profit sector, including the United Nations and an NGO, interspersed with a master's degree in the UK. I am also the founder of Posse Nippon KK, the publisher of Small Business Japan. Go to my LinkedIn profile.
When asked why I started my business, I always answer, “Because I was unemployed!” I'm embarrassed to say this, but it’s true.
'You do it on your own. Stop sending CVs' is what my mentor told me when I started looking for work again, adding, 'You have enough experience now.'
I had little idea about doing business on my own, but I was at least clear about the fact that my employability had significantly decreased by that time. What Japanese employer would want to hire an ex-journalist woman, who is potentially outspoken, and possibly older than the manager? (As you see, age matters in Japanese society)
Being a journalist or non-profit worker did not require me to develop money-generating skills or even a simple concept of what a business was. So, I started from scratch by referring to classic books, such as James Webb Young’s A Technique for Producing Ideas. My biggest discovery from the initial research in those days was, “Oh, I can also contribute to society as a businessperson!”
I now find humour and irony in the fact that as a former newspaper journalist and non-profit worker, I firmly and naïvely believed that only the non-profit sector could achieve social justice (technically, a newspaper is published by a for-profit company). However, this 'discovery' changed my thinking and eventually pushed me to embark on another journey. It was like a lamp being lit in the cold reading room of the university library where I used to do research during my unemployment. This was the very starting point of Posse Nippon, operator of Small Business Japan.
Business: a Never-ending journey
Each of you has your own story and journey of your business. Surely you, too, have encountered eye-opening moments of truth in your career. Doing business is a never-ending journey of harnessing your talent and skills to contribute to someone else, and thus, to society as a whole.
I value your input and would love to hear your thoughts and questions on potential topics. If there is a specific subject you're interested in, I'd be delighted to consider it for a future article.
