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Samurai_Jerk wrote:Dude, I feel your pain. I've tried to help several friends with small companies based outside of Japan purchase different products and materials over the years only to be met with "Sorry, we can only sell to you if blah, blah, blah." One of the problems is most sales people here aren't compensated for how much they sell. They get a fixed salary and only care about hitting their targets so they don't get a bad review from their boss.
You ever wonder about all those salarymen crowding up cafes in the middle of the workday smoking cigs or napping? Most of them are salesmen who've already hit their quota so instead of trying to make more sales they piss away the rest of the day. If they were to go back to the office they'd have to stay till bucho went home but if they're out "selling" they can go home at a reasonable hour. Plus they'd probably be told to get out there and sell when they really have no incentive to do so.
I've often said that money talks in Japan but not loud enough.
Samurai_Jerk wrote:Plus there's the extreme risk aversion so unless you've got an intro from someone they trust, they don't dare do business with you. Especially not a shady-ass gaijin.
wagyl wrote:How did you find us? You enter "clay" and "municipality name" in the search engine of your choice, they come up first hit........ Maybe they should keep their address off the interweb!
wagyl wrote:Maybe the small operations where I am are even more desperate for money, I have had more success getting supplies locally. Then again, I am usually going to the top and speaking to the big boss. I think I would probably have little success with the underlings.
wagyl wrote:On a slightly related note, I have at times had setbacks because I do not have a company structure. I work alone and it is my own hands-on craft, so the person doing the work does not change with the business organisation structure. The extra administration involved with incorporating has never made the benefits of it worthwhile, but it is interesting that they feel more comfortable with dealling with a company.
If they knew the truth, there are many ways that transactions with a company are a bigger risk to them: as an individual, I can be sued for every sen I own, be it for debt or for liability for a mistake I make. If I am a company, that liability is limited to the tiny tiny capital that was used to set the company up.
matsuki wrote:Local German expat that built a log house in the area nearby 40 years ago...he was saying he had the same issues and ended up importing logs from Canada on his own.
wagyl wrote:Meh, they are nothing more than a big cat toilet.
Wage Slave wrote:matsuki wrote:Local German expat that built a log house in the area nearby 40 years ago...he was saying he had the same issues and ended up importing logs from Canada on his own.
Is this the guy exporting Koi? If so, he imported the house as a pre-cut, drilled and routed kit I believe.
matsuki wrote:wagyl wrote:Meh, they are nothing more than a big cat toilet.Wage Slave wrote:matsuki wrote:Local German expat that built a log house in the area nearby 40 years ago...he was saying he had the same issues and ended up importing logs from Canada on his own.
Is this the guy exporting Koi? If so, he imported the house as a pre-cut, drilled and routed kit I believe.
I never asked him about Koi...you have his info? Dude I know is named Klaus...whose name I will never forget since I made some sorta "German? is your name Klaus?" joke before he introduced himself.
matsuki wrote:Ahhhh, no, he's in Niigata. I haven't actually seen his house yet but I promised to come bug him some time when I'm in town.
Wage Slave wrote:matsuki wrote:Ahhhh, no, he's in Niigata. I haven't actually seen his house yet but I promised to come bug him some time when I'm in town.
Oh, I see. Although my German also spends quite a lot of time in Niigata by chance. Apparently there are quite a lot of Koi breeders there.
wagyl wrote:I can't speak for certain, but I have a suspicion that the shutters might be a function of day of the week or time of day.
As for the arcades and underground power: yes, Niigata has benefitted from political largesse -- just look at those roads! -- but it also comes down to three words: heavy wet snow. There comes a time when you realise that preventing power lines being downed by the snowfalls, and keeping the footpaths clear with a permanent method, is better than the constant maintenance you otherwise face.
wagyl wrote:If you are going to be spending any time in Niigata, get to know トキ the crested ibis Nipponia nippon.
Samurai_Jerk wrote:
I've often said that money talks in Japan but not loud enough. Plus there's the extreme risk aversion so unless you've got an intro from someone they trust, they don't dare do business with you. Especially not a shady-ass gaijin.
wuchan wrote:Mitsuki,
Your friends with he log business probably have a supply deal with a large house builder like Sumitomo. If they sell you logs and then get a large order from their buddies that they can't 100% fulfill the house builder can and will sue them for obstruction of business. The large companies here use the legal system to keep their smaller suppliers under their thumb. In the end the suppliers end up with only one customer and refuse to do business with anyone else. If they only sell to XXX company and have records they can't be sued if they can't fill an order.
legion wrote:wuchan wrote:Mitsuki,
Your friends with he log business probably have a supply deal with a large house builder like Sumitomo. If they sell you logs and then get a large order from their buddies that they can't 100% fulfill the house builder can and will sue them for obstruction of business. The large companies here use the legal system to keep their smaller suppliers under their thumb. In the end the suppliers end up with only one customer and refuse to do business with anyone else. If they only sell to XXX company and have records they can't be sued if they can't fill an order.
sounds believable
and builders will be adding a percentage to the cost of the materials in their estimates so they don't want laymen obtaining a record of the real cost of those materials
inflames wrote:Samurai_Jerk wrote:
I've often said that money talks in Japan but not loud enough. Plus there's the extreme risk aversion so unless you've got an intro from someone they trust, they don't dare do business with you. Especially not a shady-ass gaijin.
IME money just doesn't talk in Japan.
I had a friend (who I haven't spoken to in years) who worked at a trading company - apparently the first thing people would ask when he called was who he knew.
Tons of experiences as a customer where the staff really don't seem to want your business.
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