Selling Through Intermediaries

— Latest update: March 2022 —

If establishing a local office in Japan does not seem like the right solution, it might be wise to use an intermediary. But the choice of such an intermediary should be made with caution, as there are vast differences between the different types of partners you might find.

The first thing to know is that the Japanese do not like to be “cold called”, they prefer to be personally introduced to a potential partner, which might be helped via a third party (such as banks, trade associations, chambers of commerce, JETRO, etc.).

Table of Contents

• Distributors/Agents
  • Indirect business with clients via agent
  • Indirect business with clients via non-exclusive distributor(s)
  • Indirect business with clients via sole-representative
• Wholesalers
• Keiretsu
• Trading Houses (Shosha)
• Franchises
• Expert reports & webinars
• Presentation
• Relevant Organisations