Welcome to Asia Tomorrow's sixth weekly news. I am your editor, Jinsoo Choi. This will be the first Asia Tomorrow content in March.

As an editor, I witnessed passionate entrepreneurs from countries I had never noticed. Taiwanese company dedicated itself to revolutionizing engineering materials. Pakistan’s Textile Company CEO who now operates the nation’s largest educational NGO. World’s first aquaculture unicorn startup based in Indonesia. The list goes on.

From their stories, I realize that entrepreneurs sincerely devote themselves to making a viable change, not just to making a profit. It may sound obvious, but making it happen is something else. This is why I enjoy writing this weekly newsletter: I can feel the passion of people who make things happen. I hope you are getting the same energy as I do.

• Japan’s Investors are Eagerly Looking for Competitive Startups

• Overview of Japan's Social Media Environment for Your Brand

• 3-Step Method for Establishing Credibility with Your Customers

• How a Mental Care App is Changing the Lives of 29 Million People in Bangladesh

• PaperPop’s Adventure of Making ‘Paper Furniture’ a Successful Business

Resources for Startups

👉 The Door to $1.5 Billion Investment is Open: All About Japan’s IPO Structure and How Startups Can Adapt

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Japan is one of the nations that aggressively invests in both domestic and foreign startups. The country’s government plans to invest more than ¥100 trillion by 2030, and financial entities are looking for startups worldwide since Japan’s IT market is still undergoing digital transformation. South Korea’s marketing solution startup Datarize introduces its experiences going IPO in Japan. Find out more about what you can achieve in the currently thriving Japanese market.

👉 Everything You Need to Know about Japan Social Media: Top Platforms, Engagements, and Brand Strategies

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Understanding the social media landscape is crucial for all businesses. Japan is no exception to this trend, but its media landscape is unique from other Asian countries. For example, the dominant platform of the nation is neither Instagram nor TikTok but Line. Japan’s social media usage is only four hours daily, one of the world's lowest. However, people of Japan actively interact with brands via media apps in unconventional ways. Looking for deep-dive research and takeaways regarding the Japanese social media environment? We got the right article for you.

Stories for Starters

👉 How to Gain Trust and Recognition from Your Customers: Character, Offers, and Honesty

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Establishing credibility with the customer is critical in many aspects: generating revisits, building brand image, and becoming an irreplaceable being to customers. The importance of this will only get bigger as more people get tired of fabricated, uncandid marketing messages. How can we approach our clients as a reliable friend? Three steps are essential: creating a brand character, making tailored offers for different customers, and maintaining trust between the two.

Stories of Entrepreneurs & Changemakers

👉 From Personal Frustration to a Nation-Wide Effect: Relaxy’s Story of Resolving Mental Care Crisis

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People in Asian countries are still reluctant to ask about mental health issues because of cultural and social restraints. Jahnnobi Rahman, who experienced severe psychological problems, decided to make a change with friends suffering from similar issues with a mobile app. The product showed impressive performance at the end of 2023, with 10,000 paid subscribers and 60,000 downloads in a year. Relaxy looks forward to integrating AI for an advanced, customized mental care experience. Jahnnobi’s story of challenge and progression will guide those who want to make a better world with their business.

👉 Can Paper be a Reliable Material for Daily Furniture? South Korean startup is Making It a Reality

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PaperPop is a Korea-based startup with a single goal: making paper-based furniture the new norm. The founder had to endure nearly five years to identify his company as a paper product brand. After that, PaperPop developed screws and nails designed explicitly for paper furniture, which led to a wide range of products, including beds and cat litter. The company is expanding to Japan and Europe to popularize paper furniture globally. Meet the founder’s story that will give you realistic insight into identifying your business’s true purpose and making it a reality.

How did the mail treat you today? I hope the weekly content can give you information and inspiration that make you think about your future business plans and philosophy. Asking ourselves why we started our journey as entrepreneurs is crucial, as the world around us is changing rapidly. Asia Tomorrow will do its best to shed light on your journey through uncertainty.

Collaboration with the underdogs team is also available! underdogs will be your partner in the format below:

• Get your story published on Asia Tomorrow and get yourself noticed.

• Be interviewed by professional journalists on Asia Tomorrow.

• Join a training program for Asian entrepreneurs as a coach.

• Are you looking for an entrepreneurship program? Let us know if you’re interested in or need it!

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underdogs, the company behind Asia Tomorrow, is South Korea’s largest entrepreneurship education company. It has trained over 15,000 entrepreneurs to date!📈

With more than 150 corporate partners in Korea, underdogs has created a supportive environment for entrepreneurs to challenge themselves and grow. 

The vision of underdogs is to change the world by fostering underdogs who turn possibilities into reality.