Getting to 50 B2B Clients in Japan Through Partnerships with Shay Khosrowshahi скачать в хорошем качестве

Getting to 50 B2B Clients in Japan Through Partnerships with Shay Khosrowshahi

Most foreign SaaS companies struggle to land even a few enterprise customers in Japan. In this episode of the Scaling Japan Podcast, we sit down with Shay Khosrowshahi, co-founder of NXL and former Managing Director of Ulife APAC, to break down how he built high-impact partnerships in Japan without speaking Japanese and turned them into real revenue. Shay is the co-founder of NXL and former Managing Director of Ulife APAC. Shay Khosrowshahi helped scale Ulife to 50+ B2B clients in just 18 months, largely through strategic partnerships. He was sent to Japan after a 100M investment and had to build the market from the ground up. No Japanese language skills. No shortcuts. Just execution. This episode is a tactical deep dive into how partnerships can accelerate credibility, unlock enterprise doors, and drive real revenue in Japan. If you are a SaaS founder, GTM leader, or expanding into Japan, this is a blueprint episode. Key Takeaways Why credibility matters more than contracts in Japan The two partnership models that actually work: distribution vs strategic alliances How to vet partners and why hunger matters more than brand size The 70/30 discovery rule for partnership meetings Why your biggest competitor in Japan is inaction How to build internal champions inside partner organizations Managing harmony culture while still moving deals forward Why Japan is a market of visible commitment Why landing direct customers first gives leverage in partnership negotiations Show Notes 00:01 Introduction to Shay and his Japan scaling journey 02:09 What partnerships really mean in Japan 03:11 Distribution partners vs strategic alliances 06:39 How to qualify and vet partners 10:47 The 70/30 discovery framework 17:21 Training partners and creating internal champions 29:20 Cultural hurdles and harmony challenges 38:21 Measuring partnership health beyond revenue 45:32 Final advice for founders entering Japan 46:31 Why direct traction strengthens partnership leverage 🎧 SCALING JAPAN PODCAST – GROW YOUR BUSINESS IN JAPAN Listen on: 🎧 Spotify ➜ https://open.spotify.com/episode/4dOT... ▶️ Apple Podcast ➜ https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... ❤️ YouTube Music ➜    • The Scaling Japan Podcast   🎶 Player FM ➜ https://player.fm/series/scaling-japa... 📻 Radio Public ➜ https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/sc... Guest Appearance: 🔗 Shay Khosrowshahi Linkedin :   / shay-khosrowshahi   🌐 NXL : www.yournextlevel.io 📫 Reach out to us: https://scalingyourcompany.com/contact/ 💌 Join our newsletter for free business resources and new episode alerts: https://scalingyourcompany.com/blog/# 🎙 Produced by: Scaling Your Company & SmartStart Japan Scaling Your Company: 1-on-1 advisory on sales, marketing, and leadership Online courses to grow your business in Japan Bilingual websites, SEO, and digital strategy SmartStart Japan: Company incorporation and back-office services 🌐 https://smartstartjapan.com/