Brief Guide for European Companies on Importers and Wholesale Distributors in Japan (food and wine; ICT; medical devices)

The aim of this Report is to facilitate market access to Japan for the European exporters in a number of selected sectors (food and wine, ICT, medical devices) through the sharing of comprehensive and practical information. There is no doubt that the Japanese market presents a huge potential for the committed, diligent and performing European SMEs with a clear and long term business vision. However, most SMEs cannot afford to establish a branch office in Japan, preferring to operate through Japanese business partners, distributors etc. In this context, the Report provides some background on distribution networks in Japan in the above mentioned sectors, identifies the most commonly used import routes for EU products/services and provides a number of recommendations from interviewed Japanese and European managers on key factors to succeed in Japan.

Additional material

A presentation based on this report and entitled “Brief Guide for European Companies on Importers and Wholesale Distributors in Japan (food and wine; ICT; medical devices sectors)" is also available to be donwloaded here.

Report written by Alice Tomaskova in the framework of the Minerva Fellowship Programme.

EU-Japan Centre's News

More
The EU Japan Centre is releasing a weekly press review covering Japan's economic and policy matters…
The Centre quarterly newsletter, June 2025 issue, is now available. In this issue: Centre’s…

Events

More
08/07/2025
EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation Zoom WebinarAction Plan on Economic Security: Strengthening Industrial and Technological Foundations – EU-Japan Initiatives and Opportunities for…
14/07/2025
As AI storms industry and captures headlines, the EU lit the first torch with Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 on July 12, 2024, prompting other jurisdictions to set their own rules. On May 28, 2025, Japan…
We use a selection of our own and third-party cookies on the pages of this website. If you choose "ACCEPT ALL", you consent to the use of all cookies. You can accept and reject individual cookie types.
Related
Subscribe to
our newsletters

The EU-Japan Centre currently produces 5 newsletters :

  • EU-Japan NEWS - our flagship newsletter covering the Centre's support services, information about EU (or Member States) - Japan cooperation
  • Japanese Industry and Policy News
  • “About Japan” e-News (Only available for EU companies / EU organisations)
  • Japan Tax and Public Procurement Weekly Tender Digest (Only available for EU companies / EU organisations)
  • Tech Transfer Helpdesk Newsletter
Subscribe