Question

Read the following case scenario: Sarah has now arrived in Tokyo armed with her marketing plan and culture research. She has begun seeking the best location for the branch storefront. Sarah has found a promising leasehold in Tokyo near all the car dealers and across the street from a Chinese motorbike company. The building is a small space but has good foot traffic and signage space and is located in a premier area of Tokyo. It is 75 Tsubo or 2,669 sq. ft. in size. The owners (a father and son) are asking rent of 1,000,000 JPY or $8895.21 per month excluding utilities. The owners have several buildings in the area and are well-respected real estate brokers in Tokyo as their family has been in the business for generations. The broker who arranged the meeting urged Sarah to think carefully before she spoke to the two men. They were rather old fashioned and probably best to avoid offending them as they controlled a lot of real estate in Tokyo. It might be hard to find a good space if they did not like her. Still, the rent was higher than she budgeted for and getting the price down $1500 would be best for the company. Sarah was due to meet the father and son the next day. At first, she thought it best for the real estate broker who showed her the space to carry out the negotiations. When asked, the broker was surprised by the request. He declined immediately explaining that it would be impolite. Sarah was worried. She clearly was out of her league. Yet, she had to start learning. 1. Discuss the cultural considerations of gender and age issues in Japan that could affect the negotiations;

Answer 1

Sarah is a new in Japan who has moved to Japan to start her business. She is not aware of the rich traditions and culture that exist in Japan. She is also not good in negotiations which puts her in a dilemma on the price she is willing to pay for the store.

Japan is a county where people consider traditions, culture and respect to elders as utmost. It applies in family life as well as in business. When you are a new person in Japan who is there to do business, understanding the cultural environment and the impact that has on the business is crucial. If you are in the good books of the parties you are dealing with you will be able to do pretty good business. If you are not, then your business there is an end.

People in Japan consider respect more than profits. When you need to get things done you need to first understand the seller and the environment they are coming from. They can get easily offended by your words or actions which will destroy your business.

Gender and age are very relevant cultural factors that impact business decisions on Japan. Elderly people are always respected and they take the most important decisions. Usually men are ruling the business and when a woman has to do business it becomes usually difficult to gain the respect.

In this case she needs to talk to the father and the son. The father is a well respected real estate broker and has many holding in the area. He is the decision maker and the son would be the one who runs his decisions. When she is talking to the father, she would need to address him and give proper respects for this age and his status. It is very important to be submissive and not be proactive in negotiating the price.