Changes in Japan's Post-Bubble Business Environment: Implications for Foreign-Affiliated Companies

Abstract

Long noted as highly competitive, the Japanese market has become even more cutthroat in the “post-bubble” era, the period following the Japanese economic collapse. Only the fittest are likely to survive the correction taking place as Japan grapples with a severe recession that is threatening to extend worldwide. The research question pursued is how these “moment-in-time” market changes affect foreign-affiliated companies in Japan. The study examines whether lessons that may be learned from those foreign companies that have successfully negotiated the minefield of Japan's business culture can be applied to other world markets. It then aims to induce, from their responses, some implications for international marketing strategy. It is based on a study of the post-bubble changes in the Japanese market from 1990 to 1998. Using a Grounded Theory approach, the research process involves 58 personal interviews with executives of 52 successful foreign firms operating in Japan. A framework distilled from a previous article by the author is used to compare and contrast the pre- and post-bubble situations.

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