Cultural Brand Strategist: Managing expectations across borders. Bridging the gap between Western brand identity and Japanese cultural reality, backed by three decades of technical, creative, and marketing leadership.
Nowadays, with the internet, everybody expresses what they think without any accountability for what they say. Feelings and opinions often overshadow facts, so it’s no shock to hear comments like, “I do not care about Asians. What have they done for the Black community?” To be clear, solidarity is not a zero-sum game, but here … Continue reading Japanese American Activists in the Civil Rights Movement, Here Are the Facts, Not My Feelings
It feels like every time I am at Blue Sparrow Coffee, I hear someone asking what is “Japanese iced coffee.” While at Blue Sparrow, I chuckled out loud even with the dude across from me on a Zoom call of sorts when reading their FAQ because it literally says: “This is by far the most … Continue reading Cultural Critique: When “Japanese” Becomes an Unearned Quality Mark
That’s how I felt when I submitted my immediate response to their editorial, so it was not a one-way street. Yeah, that picture is of my dad (far left) who was interned at Rohwer (individual number 26285F). This is a personal response I originally published on Oishii-desu.com after The Denver Post used the internment of … Continue reading Cultural Critique: Exploiting My Father’s Internment for Political Narrative
“You’re racist, he’s racist, she’s racist, your family is racist, they can’t be racist cuz black, and most importantly, you’re all racist, except me.” Yeaaah ok, right. This sounds like every unhinged individual who can’t effectively communicate an issue and defaults to the blanket labels of “racist,” “fascist,” and “Nazi.” When I hear that, I … Continue reading Epistemology: “You’re Racist”
For a multicultural country like the US, we put the "multi" in multicultural by having multiple ways of butchering how to pronounce foreign words that have become a part of everyday American culture, unlike sofa, an Arabic word by way of Turkish that somehow we don't completely Muricanize. I've experienced this my whole life. Ask … Continue reading Cultural Critique: Bonsai and Banzai Are Not the Same, My Silly Fellow Americans — And AI Isn’t Helping
I have summed up what the objective of the woke narrative is: you always root and side with the underdog. That's simply, and unfortunately, it. Nothing deeper than that. This is obviously a contentious topic. Under this framework, no matter the facts or the massive amount of hypocrisy and contradictions within it, the only objective … Continue reading Cultural Critique: How the Woke Narrative Colonizes Japanese Culture
Ambitious Scale Meets Branding Dilution – Lessons from a Failed U.S. Expansion Source Material: September 2, 2016 article (updated 2021) on oishii-desu.com, cross-referenced with later public outcomes. Shared to protect Japanese brand integrity and help them succeed in the U.S. market without dilution or missteps, not to criticize. Executive Summary Ramla Inc. (founded 1980 in … Continue reading Brand Audit: Ramla Restaurant Group
Brand Audit: Kawahiro — How a Chinese-Made Knife Brand Fabricates Japanese Identity to Capture Premium Pricing Independent Cultural & Strategic AssessmentGreg Taniguchi Brand Audit Executive Summary Kawahiro is a mass-produced kitchen knife brand manufactured in Yangjiang, China (a major hub for cutlery production). Despite its entirely Chinese origin, operations, and ownership structure, the brand employs … Continue reading Brand Audit: Kawahiro
Brand Audit: SomiSomi Soft Serve & TaiyakiIndependent Cultural & Strategic Assessment Greg Taniguchi Brand Audit Executive Summary SomiSomi, founded in 2016 in Los Angeles’ Koreatown by Matt Kim, has grown into a major U.S. chain (33+ locations across California, Texas, Nevada, Washington, and expanding) by popularizing the “ah-boong” format: a Korean bungeo-ppang fish-shaped pastry filled … Continue reading Brand Audit: SomiSomi
Brand Audit: San-J (Jirushi) — How an 8th-Generation Japanese Soy Sauce Company Cracked the U.S. Market Without Compromising What Made It Great Independent assessment of San-J's U.S. market strategy versus the typical Japanese food brand entry model, identifying the decisions that led to category dominance and authentic brand equity. Shared to protect Japanese brand integrity … Continue reading Brand Audit: San-J (Jirushi)