Setting Up a Web Shop in Japan

By Sam Zipursky

This is the story of Dane Ash, a web entrepreneur and talented artist who made the move from Melbourne, Australia to Kyoto, Japan. He's a busy, successful individual who uses his environment as a fuel for his art and design work. "Kyoto has been a real source of inspiration for me," he says. "Both traditional and contemporary design interests me, and I feel Japan is a leader in these areas."

Dane tells me that Australia has a "really happening art and design scene" in spite of its small population. One of the biggest differences between Melbourne and Kyoto, he explains, is the huge number of freelancers on the move in Australia: "Everyone there is involved somehow in creative outlets." But Japan is catching up: "Right now in Japan, it's a pretty exciting time, because there is a shift towards freelance and a lot more individuals are doing interesting work." 

Dane divides his time between running an Internet business and blogging about design in Japan, and also producing his own artwork. He works on two websites - www.DaneAsh.com and www.JapanWebStart.jp - which have their own specific purposes and functions. DaneAsh.com serves as a Japan design/art blog as well as being the online home of Dane's personal design and art portfolio. It's clear that this is a guy who is passionate about his work - before I can ask him about his site, he starts to enthuse:

"I love pattern design, traditional use of color and form, and the modern crossover that is so evident in Japan. I have seen such great work here... I just really wanted to document it with my own interpretation, so I started my blog. It has articles about design, events, exhibitions and photos of any good design and art I find. I like to show people - particularly people back home - what influences and inspires me. The site has a lot of samples of my work from both Australia and here in Japan, so the Japan influence is pretty easy to see."

As design blogs go, this one is fascinating because it highlights the minutiae of everyday Japanese things - right down to the design of stickers used to attach advertising posters to walls in Kyoto. Pay the blog a visit and you'll see (literally) what Japan looks like when seen through the eyes of a designer/artist.

Dane's most recent project, however, is www.JapanWebStart.jp. This came about as a practical solution to some of the challenges he faced when starting out in Japan as a designer. "It can be hard to connect with people in Japan," Dane tells me, "to get the services needed and to have an avenue to customers. But because of the tools available now, the Internet offers great opportunities to bridge cultural and language barriers."

Now he is making his tailored services available to people who find themselves in similar situations:

"JapanWebStart.jp offers comprehensive website design packages in Japanese and English. There is a definite need for bilingual web services at a price that is accessible to start-ups, individuals and small businesses that are looking to grow in Japan. The technology used offers the tools for powerful self-marketing, integration with online apps and good search engine results. It includes design, hosting, a blog, and an easy-to-use system to enable site updates in both languages. Everything is included to make it easy to get up and running."

Since he seems to be doing very nicely, I asked Dane for some tips on how to be successful as a start-up in Japan. Here are his pearls of wisdom:

"Of course it is important to learn Japanese! Though don't let language be a barrier. I've noticed Japanese actually enjoy doing business in English. Everything takes longer than you would expect, and meeting the right people is difficult here, so I would say: don't be afraid to go out with the intention of meeting people in your industry and don't be afraid to be the first to start the conversation. Most Japanese are willing to help, so be assertive." 


Dane Ash's site can be found at www.JapanWebstart.jp - read his blog at www.DaneAsh.com

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