In its ongoing efforts to help European SMEs access the Japanese market, since 2015 the EU-Japan Centre has been organizing on a regular basis various market access workshops to explain the specificities of doing business in Japan, focusing on the cultural aspects or some industrial sectors. The EU-Japan Centre is pleased to report the successful conclusion of three more workshops since our October issue, co-organized with Malta Enterprise and Trade Malta on Japanese Business Culture, with the Bratislava and Kosice regional Slovakian Chambers of Commerce on the ICT sector, and with the Austrian Research Promotion Agency on Japanese Business Culture.

Notably, these workshops had new and adapted formats in comparison to the typical Market Access Workshop. Two out of three sessions were organized online with the cooperation of two different agencies from the same EU Member State, enabling wider reach of our Workshops when it comes to EU SMEs. Our cooperation with the Slovakian Chamber of Commerce and Industry included a series of breakout rooms at the initiative of our partner, where participants could get one-on-one time with individual speakers. On the other hand, our onsite workshop co-organized with the Austrian Research Promotion Agency, took place as part of the Future Forward Innovation Hub in Vienna, a successful innovation event with over 500 participants. The workshop included an interview with a successful Japanese start-up in Austria and the Asia Director of Invest in Austria, conducted by our expert on Japanese Business Culture. With the upcoming Osaka Expo on the horizon, interest in the Japanese market is high!

Interested in organizing an on-site or online workshop? Please contact Ms Ana Horvatin at: workshops(at)eu-japan.eu