Startup City Fukuoka

After visiting Seattle in 2011, Fukuoka City declared itself "Startup City Fukuoka" in 2012, and has been implementing various initiatives to support startups with the aim of creating a city where anyone who wants to take on a challenge can do so easily.

In 2014, the city was designated by the government as a "National Strategic Special Zone," a special area where regulations and systems are reformed for a limited area and their effects are verified in order to revitalize Japan's economy, and has been creating an environment to support startups, such as the "Startup Visa" to support foreign entrepreneurs and the "Startup Corporate Tax Reduction" to support startups.

In October of the same year, as a support facility to create a startup community, we opened the "Startup Cafe" on the third floor of a building with coffee shops on the first and second floors, and in 2017, Fukuoka Growth Next, a joint public-private startup support facility, opened on the site of an old elementary school in the center of the city. In 2019, an "Engineer Cafe" was opened to form an engineers' community in line with the "Engineer Friendly City Fukuoka" declaration.

Along with these various measures, we have focused on the dissemination of information. Currently, we mainly use our website, social networking services such as Facebook, and newsletters to disseminate information on startup support offered by Fukuoka City. And now, we are pleased to announce the renewal of our website, "Matchup Fukuoka", which is one of the contents of our information dissemination, and summarizes information on startup companies in Fukuoka City!

In this newsletter, we have asked the startups listed on the renewed website to share their expectations for the website and their advice for those who are thinking of starting a business in Fukuoka City in the future.

Nulab

https://nulab.com/
Founder: Masanori Hashimoto
*This startup is listed from the pre-renewal Matchup Fukuoka.

1. Please introduce yourself and your business.
The company is called Nulab; Nulab is a combination of "NULL" and "Laboratory" meaning to create something new from NULL. Nulab mainly provides the following collaboration services.

• Backlog: Project management tool
• Cacoo: Visual collaboration tool
• Typetalk: Business chat tool
• Nulab Pass: Security enhancement tool

2. What do you think you have gained from being listed on Matchup?
Being listed on the city's website has increased our credibility with people outside the country. In addition, we were able to start communication with them more smoothly because they were able to research and contact us in advance.

3. What are your expectations from Matchup?
We would like our products, Backlog, Cacoo, and Typetalk, to be used not only by domestic users but also by overseas users. In particular, we would like to provide our products to the cities with which the city has MoUs.

4. What advice do you have for people considering starting a business in Fukuoka?
Traveling abroad and other distant places will give you the stimulation you need to give birth to new ideas and so on. It may be difficult to do so now due to the prevention of the spread of COVID-19, but in the future when we overcome this difficulty, try to make Fukuoka City your first travel destination. Let's have a chat together over some delicious Japanese dishes.

Good Luck 3

https://www.gl-inc.jp/english/
Founder: Kazuhisa Inoue

1. Please introduce yourself and your business.
The company is called "Good Luck 3" and it’s an entertainment company! We have developed the "Touch Me! Gudetama" series, as well as original IP and hyper-casual games. In recent years, we have developed the social platforms "RAKU" and "Crypt-Oink" using blockchain technology. We are also involved in other video production businesses such as the drama "Method of Life" and corporate PR videos.

2. What do you think you have gained from being featured on Matchup?
We feel that the fact that the site is in English and is a Fukuoka City site is an advantage. When we are explaining our company to foreign companies, we can give them an overview of our company by having them look at the site since it is in English.
Also, when a foreign company looks at Good Luck 3, it is usually difficult to obtain information because of the foreign language and it looks like an unknown company. However, the fact that Good Luck 3 is listed on a website operated by a local government may have given them a sense of trust in more than a little way.

3. What are your expectations from Matchup?
We expect to improve our presence and brand image overseas. For example, we would like to acquire partners who can cooperate and collaborate with us as we expand our blockchain products and game business to the US and European markets. Fukuoka City has a strong presence in Japan, and it would be great if we can spread that impression overseas as well.

4. What advice do you have for people considering starting a business in Fukuoka?
What advice do you have for people considering starting a business in Fukuoka? The startup community in Fukuoka is very welcoming and open, so I encourage you to jump into a startup first. And from there, you will be able to see the opportunities.

KAICO

http://www.kaicoltd.jp/home/english-home/
Founder: Kenta Yamato
*This startup is listed from the renewed Matchup site.

1. Please introduce yourself and your business.
The company is called "Kaico". After graduating from university and working for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for 15 years, I decided to start my own business and ran an e-commerce business, but due to poor performance, I changed direction and started my own business based on the technology of "protein development using silkworms" that I encountered at Kyushu University Business School. My goal is to spread "vaccines using silkworms" to the world by utilizing Fukuoka City's start-up support.

2. What are your expectations from Matchup?
Since our goal is to make the world healthier and the environment healthier, we are looking forward to meeting global partners in MATCHUP: co-developers, funders, and people who can support our silkworm-made vaccines.

3. What advice do you have for people considering starting a business in Fukuoka?
There is a great possibility that another pandemic will occur in the future, not just COVID 19. Let's create an innovative world for that time.

dopang & co

http://dopang.co/en/a-homepage-section/
Founder & Partner: Tania Mirella
*This startup is listed from the renewed Matchup site.

1. Please introduce yourself and your business.
The company is called "dopang & co". We are developing GENGOYA (gengoya.club) in Japan. Gengoya is an omnichannel interest-based Japanese language learning platform that combines vocabulary and illustrations. We aim to motivate people to learn Japanese and help users to expand their vocabulary while having lots of fun.

2. Why did you choose Fukuoka to start your business?
It is developed but very compact and affordable to live in. You can easily go to the mountain and the beach on the same day. The airport is also very close to the city.

3. What are your expectations from Matchup?
I would like to expand my network, find customers and partners all around the world. I believe many people are interested in Japan but not necessarily learning the language. I hope GENGOYA can be their point of entry to experience fun Japanese learning.

4. What advice do you have for people considering starting a business in Fukuoka?
Plan well, try to learn the language and culture. If you have faith in your idea, willing to work hard, you will find a way to make it happen in this very welcoming city.