Georgia has named the newest head of its Japan trade and investment office ahead of a major conference bringing top leaders from the South together with Japanese executives and government officials.
Takao Yamamoto took up the role as managing director for the state in Tokyo in mid-July.
The announcement of his appointment comes a little more than two months before a 30-strong delegation from Georgia will visit the Japanese capital for the 47th annual SEUS-Japan alliance conference.
Takao Yamamoto
Mr. Yamamoto is a veteran of the food industry, with three decades of experience that includes stints working in the Asahi Kasei food division, overseeing the food ingredients department of Japan Tobacco, running Miyoshi Oil & Fat Ltd. and operating as president of CSM Japan, the local affiliate of the international bakery giant.
But he has also worked as a consultant, both privately and for the Japan External Trade Organization, or JETRO, helping companies on both sides with their investment and international sales strategies in both directions. JETRO maintains an office in Georgia.
That latter experience is what endeared Mr. Yamamoto to the state.
“Mr. Yamamoto’s wealth of experience reflects both aspects of the Japan office’s mission – helping companies enter the Japanese market and assisting Japanese companies with locating in international markets such as the U.S.,” said Georgia Department of Economic Development Deputy Commissioner of Global Commerce Misti Martin in a statement.
Some $4 billion in new investment has been committed by Japanese companies in Georgia within the last decade. While some of these have been greenfield projects, many have come from expansions by the more than 400 Japanese firms that have set up shop in the state since the 1970s, starting with YKK and Murata during the governorship of Jimmy Carter.
In 2023, the last time the SEUS-Japan conference was held in Tokyo (Charlotte, N.C., took the intervening year) a large Georgia delegation celebrated its 50th anniversary of continuous representation in the Japanese capital.
At the time, Joseph Huntemann had recently been installed as managing director there, relocating from Atlanta to replace Yumiko Nakazono after the latter’s retirement. But Mr. Huntemann’s tenure on the ground lasted less than two years, a short-lived moment compared to Ms. Nakazono’s more than 30 years with the department, including 25 at the helm of the office. The department announced the search for a replacement last September.
Department spokesperson Jessica Atwell told Global Atlanta that the state’s longevity in the market and Japan’s “role as a top source of international jobs and investments, maintaining our representation in this market and finding someone with experience like Mr. Yamamoto’s was a top priority from the get-go.”
In an interview before a dinner celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Georgia office at Tokyo’s Peninsula Hotel in 2023, department Commissioner Pat Wilson outlined to Global Atlanta why this position is so important for the state’s recruitment efforts.
A half-century of commitment, he noted, is vital in a country famous for its corporations’ long time horizons.
“That narrative really fits very well in this culture, because this is a culture that truly believes in long-term planning, making deliberate decisions, weighing all the benefits,” Mr. Wilson said, having just visited long-term investors Kubota, Yanmar and Toyota Material Handling. “And so when you have a state who’s been a partner for a long time, who’s committed to the market, people and culture, it just makes it, I think, an easier decision for them and probably part of their decision-making process too.”
Pat Wilson speaks at the 50th anniversary celebration at Tokyo’s Peninsula Hotel in 2023. Credit: Trevor Williams / Global Atlanta
Mr. Yamamoto, for his part, noted on his personal website that representing the state would be “a new adventure” for the seasoned executive.
“In this new position, my primary objectives will be to attract and expand investments from Japanese companies in Georgia, increase exports of Georgian-made products to Japan, and promote tourism,” he wrote. “I’m really looking forward to leveraging all my cross-border business experience to deepen the economic ties between Japan and Georgia. I’ll be working closely with companies and organizations to create new value together!”
To learn more about Mr. Yamamoto, visit his personal website here (soon to be shut down) or Georgia’s Japanese language site here.
From the archive:
AloJapan.com