Business Development in Japan from Kitakyushu City! "Japan Entry to KKJ (Kitakyushu, Japan)" will be held in Singapore on November 1st.

The City of Kitakyushu, JETRO Kitakyushu, JETRO Singapore, EnterpriseSG and WingArc1st Inc. will hold "Japan Entry to KKJ" as a side event at the Singapore Week of Innovation & Technology ("SWITCH*") to be held in Singapore from October 31st (Tue) to November 2nd (Thu), 2023.


We aim to stimulate the local economy with overseas startups by maximizing the strengths of Kitakyushu City's manufacturing industry cluster, WingArc1st Inc.'s strength as a data company, the strength of Singapore's startup ecosystem, and JETRO and EnterpriseSG's ability to combine these strengths.

The purpose of the "Japan Entry to KKJ" event is to promote Kitakyushu City's attractiveness as a gateway to the Japanese market to overseas startups, investors, and other interested parties. Azendian Solutions Pte. Ltd., which was selected for Kitakyushu City's demonstration support project this year, will speak in a panel session with Kitakyushu Mayor Takeuchi and WingArc 1st Corporation President Tanaka, and TOTO Ltd., which has its headquarters in Kitakyushu City, will introduce its open innovation project with overseas startups.

Startups, VCs, and accelerators who are considering expanding to Japan or want to compare startup ecosystems across Japan, please join us in this event at SWITCH 2023!

*SWITCH official website: https://www.switchsg.org

<Outline of the event:>
Date: 1st November 2023, Wednesday
Time: 12:45-14:30 SGT (reception opens at 12:30)
Venue: "Networking Zone" at SWITCH, Sands Expo and Convention Centre

Attendance fee: Free (pre-registration required).

Program Outline:

Language: English
For more details and registration:
https://www.kti-center.jp/invest-kitakyushu/switch2023.html

<Speakers:>


<Messages for the event:>
■Kitakyushu City
In its aim to be the friendliest startup regional city in Japan, Kitakyushu is committed to providing a solid line of support for startups that match their stage of growth, including support for proof-of-concept (PoC) pilot projects in collaboration with local industries, academia, financial institutions and the local government, commercializing products, and services, and creating innovation with local companies. Kitakyushu is proactive in offering opportunities to startups from overseas with no experience in Japan and provides strong support in terms of services, policies, and human resources. Startups from Singapore have been selected to take part in the city's PoC program for three consecutive years since fiscal 2021.
Business activities (Startup Promotion Division, Industry and Economics Bureau):
Support for attracting foreign corporations and foreign-owned companies, assisting local companies in Kitakyushu expanding their operations overseas, and boosting the growth of startups.
URL: https://www.kti-center.jp/invest-kitakyushu/index.html

■Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) Kitakyushu, Singapore
It is one of JETRO's main missions to work with overseas startups to stimulate the local economy and increase investment in Japan. We are convinced that Singaporean startups are mostly in the data domain, such as fintech, and are a good match for Kitakyushu's manufacturing industry. JETRO Kitakyushu and JETRO Singapore, in cooperation with Kitakyushu City and EnterpriseSG, will continue to promote matching between Kitakyushu companies and overseas startups.
Business activities: Support global expansion of Japanese startups, provide platform for cross-border collaboration and cooperation between Japanese companies and overseas startups, foreign direct investment into Japan, etc.
URL: https://www.jetro.go.jp/themetop/innovation/

■EnterpriseSG
EnterpriseSG supports Singapore startups to expand their business in Japan. In May last year, EnterpriseSG signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with JETRO to support companies in the digital and innovation fields in both Japan and Singapore. EnterpriseSG is also supporting Azendian Solutions Pte. Ltd. in its expansion into Japan.
Business activities: We champion enterprise development and work with committed companies to build capabilities, innovate and go global. We also support the growth of Singapore as a hub for global trading and startups. As the national standards and accreditation body, we continue to build trust in Singapore's products and services through quality and standards.
URL: https://www.enterprisesg.gov.sg/

■WingArc1st Inc.
WingArc1st provides the data empowerment solution to accelerate data utilization and data-driven digital transformation, and in March 2023, we have signed a comprehensive partnership agreement with Kitakyushu City with the aim of developing a regional revitalization model originating from Kitakyushu. In the collaboration with Kitakyushu City, we are greatly pleased to have supported Azendian Solutions Pte. Ltd., which one of startups in Singapore that we are supporting in data utilization domain, with the expansion into Kitakyushu City.
Business: WingArc1st Inc. develops solutions that leads the Japanese market in the data-empowerment fields of form solutions and business intelligence.
We have positioned the expansion of our overseas business as one of our growth strategies and have strengthened our business in the ASEAN region by opening a subsidiary in Shanghai, China in 2009,a subsidiary in Singapore in 2014, and a subsidiary in Melbourne, Australia in 2017.
URL: https://www.wingarc.com/en/

<Contact:>
Startup Promotion Division, Industry and Economics Bureau, Kitakyushu City
mail： san-startup@city.kitakyushu.lg.jp