Japanese “local Zebra companies” to shape the future in the local communities

Today, Japan grapples with significant challenges, including a declining birthrate, an aging population, and a shrinking populace, particularly pronounced in local communities. As a remedy, policies are being advanced to foster local Zebra ecosystems that transform social challenges into business opportunities, based on the “Zebra companies” concept.

What is a local Zebra company?

Proposed by American female entrepreneurs, Zebra companies aim to address social issues while pursuing economic growth from a long-term view, unlike “unicorn companies,” which prioritize market valuation. Zebras and Company Inc., working to raise awareness of Zebra companies in Japan, identifies four key attributes:

• The goal of zebra companies is to create a better society through business growth. Maximizing revenue and profits is not the end goal; rather, they focus on addressing societal issues as the purpose of our business.
• Zebra companies require diverse assets such as time, creativity, and community to succeed, instead of relying on a narrow-minded business strategy that could lead to short-term success.
• Zebra companies prioritize long-term and inclusive management strategies, working to ensure the happiness of all stakeholders over maximizing shareholder value in the short term.
• The vision of zebra companies is shared and consistently executed, as they balance trade-offs between diverse factors and strive to achieve specific goals.

Local Zebra companies specifically target regional problems.

What is the local Zebra ecosystem promotion policy?

The “Basic Guidelines for promoting businesses to address regional issues,” unveiled by the Small and Medium Enterprise Agency on March 6, seek to maximize social impact by creating an ecosystem centered around local Zebra companies, involving various stakeholders. Zebras and Company Inc. contributed as a committee member to the policy’s development and examination.

During the announcement, Tomoko Ina, Director of the Startup and New Business Promotion Division at the agency, remarked, “Japan has a history of sustainable companies, and the traits of such small and medium enterprises, deeply embedded in their regions, align with those of local Zebra companies.”

To prepare for a comprehensive launch, demonstration projects in 10 to 20 regions are slated for this fiscal year beginning in April, aimed at establishing business models, support systems, and evaluation methodologies. She emphasized the importance of visualizing social impact to attract investment to local Zebra companies, planning to develop an impact evaluation method through these projects. Yoshitaka Tabuchi of Zebras and Company Inc. expressed hope for innovative proposals for the demonstration projects.

Examples of local Zebra companies

At the policy announcement, two local Zebra companies already working to solve regional issues shared their efforts in addressing regional challenges.

HITOBITO Inc., led by Miai Kobayashi, tackles issues in Fukushima, devastated by the Great East Japan Earthquake. She deeply connects with locals to uncover their true problems and joys, focusing on agricultural and women’s issues.

Yuta Hamada, aspiring to create job opportunities in his native town, founded Local Flag in Yosano Town, Kyoto Prefecture. The company operates regional development projects and a beer business utilizing local resources, aiming to attract young people back to the area.

Tomoko Ina highlighted a commonality between these companies: initiated by individuals cognizant of local issues, they progress by involving the community. She said, “How much you can involve local players is crucial.”

The Small and Medium Enterprise Agency will soon publicize details on the public recruitment for demonstration projects. It is hoped that this initiative will spur the emergence of numerous exceptional local Zebra companies across Japan, each contributing to resolving local challenges.