We started our business in March, 1992 in Thailand.
At first, our business was engaged in manufacturing and sales of material handling equipment (pallets, conveyers, racks, etc.). In those times, material handling industry in Thailand was 50 years behind Japan, and the past experience of Japanese customers was far future technology in Thailand.
We had decided items to sell in Thailand.
However, what we had thought "we could sell" or "we would need in the future" did not sell at all. At that time, what our customers needed was "to find" what they were having trouble with.
And in more than half of that, I had no experience.
The face of our customers when I looked for one single bolt for 2 days and delivered it to them who were 150km away from Bangkok… That decided my life in Thailand.
Where should the company go – Ask the market
I realized that the business is not to offer the customers what I want to sell, but to deliver what the customers want and that it is the way for the SMEs to live, especially in this developing country, Thailand. After that, I have been following what our customers "expect" us in each stage of the times.
Now, we are meeting our customers' requirements as a "constructor" in the Japanese society in Thailand.