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    Akira Tsuchiya(en)

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    Our background In 1991, we started the business that was not yet found in Japan, or even in the world. That business was to become an agency who provides franchise store-development service. We came up with the idea to persuade companies to join a franchise as their new business; our target was not individuals, but the small and medium-sized enterprises who already established with their businesses. With that as a start, we managed to expand over 30 franchise brands including various restaurant brands i.e. Bakery Restaurant St.Marc(650 uint in Japan, BBQ “Gyu-kaku”(850 unit in Japan), Katsudon “Katsuya”(350 unit in Japan), Sushi delivery “Gin-no Sara”(730 unit in Japan), and from other hospitality business categories i.e. Second-hand automobile dealer “Gulliver”(450 unit in Japan), Second-hand golf club dealer “Golf Partner”(350 unit in Japan), Women’s fitness club “Curves” (2,000 unit in Japan as a master franchisor of the American brand), by selling new businesses to small to medium-sized enterprises in Japan. Number of the stores we successfully opened are over 8000 ! During this time, in 1996, Akira has established a company, Prime Link Co.Ltd., to start a business that we become franchisee ourselves to grow the business. In 2001, Prime Link Co, Ltd., became the very first franchise business company that is listed on the stock market(Nasdaq Japan). In 2006, Akira left Prime Link and started our company, Assentia Holdings, Inc. In 2010, Akira has established Assentia Holdings PTE. Ltd. in Singapore, and started the business to connect Japan and the world. During the last 5 years, our client’s franchise stores have spread in 19 countries（180 unit) in the world. Japanese food business and Japanese-style service are catching a great deal of attention from the world. Our work is spreading out from Asia to Oceania, Middle Eastern, Europe and North, Central and South America. Published a business book "Gain F&B franchise business opportunities in Asia"

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    Why is the only ramen shop in Nagano in Paris? In Mongolia?



    Overseas franchises expand the overseas market for Japanese food!
    Ascentia Holdings Corporation (Head office: Kobe; Representative: Akira Tsuchiya) has opened a new ramen franchise in Paris, a bustling city on the eve of the Olympic Games.
    The new ramen restaurant was opened by Takesan Ramen (Miso Noodle Co., Ltd.; Head office: Obuse-cho, Shimotakai-gun, Nagano; Representative: Tetsuaki Takeda), which soft-opened a miso ramen restaurant based on the earthenware pot concept on 13 April 2024 near the Opera House in central Paris, France, followed by a grand opening on 18 May. Taken. This is Takesan's third overseas branch, following two in Mongolia. How is it that a ramen restaurant founded in 2008 in Nagano, opened its Obuse branch in 2018 and as of today has only one shop in Obuse, is able to develop an overseas franchise?
    The means of overseas expansion in the form of franchising opens up new possibilities for the Japanese food service industry.

    Akira Tsuchiya(en)
    Akira Tsuchiya(en)
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    ceo blog, ceo

    How to Live in Times of Uncertainty



    I have been running recently.
    While running, I always think of a poem that my mother used to sing to me,
    "Doryanense."

    "It's good to go, it's scary to come home.
    As I run, I always think,

    Physically, it's easy on the way there, hard on the way back
    Psychologically, the way there is hard, the way back is super easy.
    I always feel like this when I run on a new road that I have never run before.

    Have you ever had this experience when running on a new road that you have never run before?
    What's there to see after you get there? How far does it go?
    How far do I run? Where do you turn around?
    I don't know what's ahead, so I'm running with those things in mind.
    On the way back, I don't think about that at all because I've already run that road once.
    I know everything.
    It is psychologically easy.
    The psychological difference between a new road and a road that has been traveled many times is obvious.

    It is the same with traveling.
    If it's your first time in a new country, how do you get to immigration, or do they not speak English? How will I get from the airport to the city?
    In a country that I visit frequently, I don't think about such things at all.
    Also, going alone is different from going with a group of people, and the sense of security is different.

    This uncertainty (not knowing what will happen) causes a great deal of psychological stress.
    The difference between knowing and not knowing is a very big stress.

    And it is the same in management.
    First business, new business, first overseas business.
    The main business you have done many times.
    The major difference is uncertainty.
    You don't know what other companies are doing, but you don't know what you are doing.
    We don't have the experience. We don't have the experience.
    This is a big stress.

    This situation has been the same for a long time.
    However, the scope of uncertainty is much wider than it used to be.
    The angle of vision that we have to deal with has become wider.　
    The uncertainty is also wider, greater, and deeper.
    There are many ways to reduce one's uncertainty (psychological instability), if it leads to certainty (psychological stability).

    It is a matter of using not only one's own experience, but also the experience of other companies as if it were one's own.
    One example is franchising.
    Headquarters dispels uncertainty.
    This is because they have a lot of experience and experience in their own company (headquarters-owned business) and in other companies (franchisees).

    Successful franchise headquarters have "certainty.
    In terms of running ahead, they are a parallel runner and a companion,
    A good running companion increases certainty (psychological stability).
    If we do this, this will happen. When you get to this point, this is what starts to happen.
    They make you see the signs with certainty.
    On the other hand, there are also bad companions, who have no experience, so they are full of uncertainty and anxiety, whether they are running with you or not.
    Franchise headquarters that do not let you see the future with certainty.
    There are some.

    Not only in the franchise field, but in management in general, management is easy if you have the ability to predict and see the future with certainty.
    The future that can be predicted with certainty was described by P. F. Dragger as follows.
    Demographic data never betray you. Demographic data is the only data that can be reliably predicted in management.
    The number of people who are 35 now will certainly be 40 in five years. The total number may decrease, but it will not increase (deaths). Except for an increase due to immigration and other factors.
    That is why this data is so reliable.

    This demographic was helpful at St. Mark's, at Gyukaku, and at Curves.
    Because they kept attacking the volume zone of demographics.
    Only a few developed countries in the world, including Japan, are suffering from population decline.
    The world's challenge is the population explosion.
    How to read the demographic situation in Japan and around the world is essential for future management.

    Asia and Africa can be considered as areas that will grow demographically explosively in the future.
    Depending on the country, Southeast Asia, which has been the focus of our attention for more than 10 years, has many countries with large populations, including Indonesia. 5 Asian countries, half of which are in Asia, are at the top of the list of Japan, the 11th most populous country in the year 2023.
    China (1st), India (2nd), Indonesia (4th), Pakistan (5th), and Bangladesh (8th).
    *Nigeria (7th) Ethiopia (12th)


    Akira Tsuchiya(en)
    Akira Tsuchiya(en)
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