Japan Pre-Entry Analysis

Two weeks of research on two questions: is there demand for your product in Japan, and is your business ready to sell it here? You get the data, and a session to go through it with us, before you commit a budget.

Overview

Most companies looking at Japan have already decided the market is worth it. What they do not know yet is whether there are buyers for their product at a price that works, and what it will take to reach them: certification, the cost of landing the product, a channel, service in Japanese.

The Pre-Entry Analysis answers those two questions in order. Phase 1 tests demand. Phase 2 tests what operating in Japan would require of your business. Phase 3 is a 60-minute Insight Briefing where we take you through the findings and what they mean for your product. We stay neutral throughout. The Analysis gives your team the data, gathered and read by people who work in this market every day, and the decision stays with you. The Analysis is the first stage of Mind Melt's Japan Market Entry pack, and its fee counts toward the next stage if you continue.

In JETRO's 2025 survey of foreign-affiliated companies in Japan, 61.6% forecast an operating profit for the current fiscal year, 21.3% expected to break even and 17.1% forecast a loss (JETRO 2025 Survey). These are companies already operating here. Where a new product would land depends on its category, its price and its route to the buyer, which is what the Pre-Entry Analysis measures.

Japan Pre-Entry Analysis: A two-week analysis by Mind Melt, a Tokyo market-entry studio, that tests whether there is demand in Japan for a company's product (market validation) and what selling it in Japan would require (operational readiness: regulation and certification, logistics, landed cost and margins, trademark, language and after-sales service). The findings are delivered in a written Japan Situational Report and a 60-minute Insight Briefing. It is the first stage of Mind Melt's Japan Market Entry pack.

How do you know if a product will sell in Japan before entering?

Test two things before spending on distributors, partners or promotion. First, demand: whether Japanese buyers want the product, at what price and through which channel. Second, operational readiness: whether it can be certified, shipped and supported in Japan at a margin that works. Mind Melt's Japan Pre-Entry Analysis covers both in two weeks.

Who This Is For

Founders and owners deciding whether Japan earns a place in next year's budget. Companies whose product sells at home or in other export markets, with no data yet on Japan. Teams that have researched Japan themselves and want it checked by people working in the market. Companies weighing a distributor's or partner's offer and wanting an independent view first. Companies coming back to Japan after an attempt that stalled. Export and international managers who need Japanese evidence to take to their board or investors.

What the Analysis delivers in each situation. If you have researched Japan yourselves: Japanese market data, gathered here in Tokyo, to test your research against. If nobody on your team works on Japan full time: the groundwork in two weeks, in one report your team can work from. If a distributor or partner has made you an offer for Japan: independent market data to weigh the offer against before you sign. If an earlier attempt at Japan stalled: current data on the market, the channel and the rules, set beside what happened last time. If Japan and another market are competing for the same budget: Japanese figures in a form you can compare like for like.

What You Get

Phase 1: Market Validation (Week 1)

Is there demand? Demand: who buys this kind of product in Japan today, and how often. Opportunity size: a realistic range for your category, with the sources behind it. Competition: who you would sit next to on the shelf or in the tender, and where there is room. Consumer behavior: how Japanese buyers find, compare and choose in your category. Price positioning: where your price would sit against what Japanese buyers already pay. Channel structure: how products like yours reach buyers in Japan, and who takes a margin along the way.

Phase 2: Operational Readiness Assessment (Week 2)

Is the business ready? Regulation and certification: which rules, standards and marks apply, and how long approval takes. Logistics: how the product gets into Japan and on to the buyer. Landed cost and margins: what the product costs in Japan after freight, duty and channel margins, built from your own figures. Operational requirements: labeling, packaging, documentation, and what a Japanese partner will expect from you. Trademark protection: whether your name is free to use in Japan, and what to file before you talk to partners. Language and after-sales service: the support Japanese buyers expect, and what it means for your team.

Phase 3: Insight Briefing (Week 3, 60 minutes)

What does it all mean? The findings from Phases 1 and 2, one by one, with the data behind each. What each finding means for your product, your price and your plan. The risks, ranked by what they could cost and when they would surface. The open questions, and what it would take to answer them. Time for your team's questions, with the report already read.

Deliverables

The written deliverables arrive together at the end of Week 2. The Insight Briefing follows the next week, so your team has time to read them first. The Japan Situational Report: the full findings from both phases in one document your team can circulate. Opportunity Sizing: a realistic market range for your category in Japan, with its sources. Competitive Landscape Map: the brands you would compete with and the space between them. Buyer and Channel Snapshot: how Japanese buyers decide, what they pay, and the route your product would take to reach them. Regulatory and Certification Path: the approvals, marks and labeling your product needs, in the order you need them. Landed Cost and Margin Model: your price in Japan built up from your own cost, so the margin is visible at every step. Risk Assessment Scorecard: every risk found, rated by impact and by when it would appear. And the 60-minute Insight Briefing: the findings taken through with the senior strategist who led the work.

What We Need From You

Phase 1 runs on Japanese market data and needs little from you. Phase 2 depends on your own figures, so at kickoff we send a short intake form and ask for it back before Week 2 begins. It asks for product specifications for the products you want to bring to Japan; export prices (ex-works or FOB) and retail prices in your current markets; unit costs, minimum order quantities and production capacity; packaging and labeling as the product is sold today; certifications, test reports and trademarks you already hold; any research, contacts or partner offers on Japan you already have; and a named contact on your side for questions during the two weeks.

Confidentiality: every engagement with Mind Melt is treated as confidential. We provide an NDA at the first session, or earlier if you ask for it, and it also covers everything exchanged before it was signed.

Timeline and Investment

Two weeks of research, then a 60-minute Insight Briefing in Week 3. Investment starts at 1,200,000 yen, approximately $8,000 USD, and counts toward the Japan Market Entry Strategy if you continue.

How This Differs from the Japan Market Entry Strategy

The Pre-Entry Analysis establishes the facts: is there demand, and what does operating in Japan require. The Japan Market Entry Strategy builds on them with customer profiles, positioning, messaging, channel and partner strategy, and a 12-month roadmap. Each stage can be bought on its own. If you continue to the Strategy, the Pre-Entry fee counts toward it.

Current Engagement

An international e-bike brand: analysis of regulation, distribution and brand position for its next phase in Japan. Report due November 2026.