사진 확대
The Kyoto Chamber of Commerce and Industry is an indispensable part of Kyoto’s corporate growth. It goes beyond the general function of corporate support and serves as a focal point for uniting Kyoto companies.
Charismatic founders such as Kazuo Inamori of Kyocera and Koichi Tsukamoto of Wakoru also served as chairman of the site. The current chairman is Horiba Atsushi, the eldest son of Masao Horiba, who founded the Horiba Production Company.
In a written interview in Mail Business, President Horiba said Kyoto has a sensibility that is difficult to find elsewhere. The first thing to pick is ‘not to imitate others’.
“If you want to coexist with others in a limited space called a branch, you have to do what you can only do, not interfere with other people’s work,” he said. “It is also affected by the way they are trying to pioneer new markets rather than fighting in existing markets.”
He also pointed out that the way of thinking that values the invisible is important. “There is a culture in Kyoto that values gray rather than black and white,” he said. “There is a culture that respects ambiguity rather than strict reasoning, and this helps the company survive.”
Long-lived companies are also mentioned as a characteristic of Kyoto. Regardless of its size, it naturally becomes a long-term company because it has a mid- to long-term vision rooted in tradition and does not follow trends.
Balanced thinking is also one of the characteristics of Kyoto managers, he said. “This tendency is one of the factors that lead to long-lived companies.”
Although Kyoto has a long corporate history, it is difficult to find a new company that has been emerging so that the number of Kyoto-listed companies remains at 65 for a long time. When asked if the era of Kyoto companies has stagnated, he said, “Considering that venture companies have an extremely low probability of success, there is no need to look pessimistic about the current situation. Kyoto will survive in the era of artificial intelligence.”
He cited cooperation between companies, universities, and financial institutions as Kyoto’s strength. Beyond Kyoto University, Kyoto’s universities, not Kyoto Bank, evaluated that Kyoto’s financial institutions are now creating a Kyoto model. “It’s not limited to individual universities, companies, and banks, but now the entire city is making a good trend,” he explained.
[Kyoto correspondent Lee Seunghoon]
AloJapan.com