Lighting a candle for success

The Internet has made it possible for us to buy many things from all over the world with just a mouse click. However, there are still many products and brands in the world which Japanese consumers don’t know much about.

Steki International Inc currently imports cosmetics and innovative candles from the United States. The company imports candle brands DayNa Decker, THYMES and ILLUME, for example. These items are available at department stores and on the company’s online shops.

Heading up Steki International is President Katsushi Shimakage. Born in Tokyo, he studied biotechnology at Chiba University. After graduating in 1991, he joined Nomura Securities where he spent three years. He studied accounting and worked for an IT company in the IPO (initial public offering) area, while obtaining the U.S. CPA qualification at the University of Illinois. In 2005, he launched Steki International to introduce new items to Japanese consumers.

Japan Today reporter Taro Fujimoto visits Shimakage at his office in Chiyoda Ward to hear more.

What is Steki International’s business?

We import cosmetic products and candles from the United States. Those items are sold at our online shops, retail outlets and department stores nationwide. Our policy is to find high quality products from around the world that surprise and impress people by bringing them to the Japanese market.

How did you start the current business?

When I was researching some profitable and unique businesses, I found that there are a lot of uncommon imported cosmetic products that are not being sold in Japan due to the government regulations. I thought it would be very interesting to import such items exclusively to Japan.

What is the e-commerce market like now?

It is very competitive because there are so many similar types of business. But it depends on the items you deal with. In some areas, it’s not so competitive yet.

How do you advertise your products?

We advertise in magazines occasionally. But we often let our amateur reviewers use our products and post their opinions on online shopping websites. They also write about our products on their blogs. So, word of mouth is often the most effective marketing method.

Your company has started to bear carbon oxygen (CO2) emission cost of your products.

Yes. We buy C2 emission rights which are equal to the amount of CO2 necessary for producing, importing and selling our products. The rights will be applied to all of our products from July 10, but we won’t add the cost to their prices. Prices will stay the same.

Do you have any legal obligation?

The Japanese government is not currently considering to make CO2 reduction for companies. But corporations as well as consumers are highly concerned about it now. So, we’ve decided to adopt the system from now on because our business is based on air freight and aircraft emits tons of CO2. It is our responsibility and we need to tackle CO2 problem anyway. Although we have to pay for the cost, I believe consumers will choose our products because they will be more aware of environmental protection. This will ultimately benefit us, I think.

What issues do you currently face?

Since we import items that not many Japanese are familiar with, it is always an issue to improve publicity.

Where would you like to take the business in future?

I would like to deal with more diversified items in addition to current cosmetic and aroma items. I also hope that more foreign companies will be interested in our company for test-marketing purposes to consider whether their products will be accepted in the Japanese market.

How do you manage your employees?

I believe that the ideal organization is like a family. Sometimes in the office, people often blame each other when problems arise. But I’d like everyone to cooperate with each other with love, and to prioritize others’ success over his/her own success -- although this sounds corny. Since we have just launched our business, this is important to foster a corporate culture, I believe.

What is a typical day for you?

I get up at 9 a.m. and am usually in the office by 9:30. I often don’t get home until around midnight or even as late as 3 a.m. because I have to communicate with business partners on the U.S. East Coast.

How do you spend weekends?

I often sleep all day on Saturdays. Sometimes I go shopping but usually end up checking other shops. I work on Sundays.

For further information on Steki International, visit: http://www.steki.in/

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