ByDean Sensui, Star-Bulletin
Tom Yokoyama of Laser Barcode Solutions found that a small
Hawaii company can hit it big in Asia - if it is persistent
enough and finds the right partners.
Now, as president of Laser Barcode Solutions - a four-person, 4-year-old operation in Honolulu - he often has to wait. Or keep calling back.
But the size of his company hasn't prevented Yokoyama from grabbing some of the action in emerging Asian markets. His persistence landed him partners in Vietnam and the Philippines. In Manila, the printout machines Yokoyama supplied for a new computerized bingo game helped his partner gross $1 million a day in the first week of operation, he said.
"Smallness should not intimidate," said Yokoyama about other Hawaii companies that may want to venture west. He keeps looking until he can offer a potential customer the best product for the least money.
"If you're small, people doubt whether you have resources to carry it out. If all else fails you get down on your hands and knees and plead. You've got to be persistent."
Richard Bahar, business development manager for the state's Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, said Yokoyama and other entrepreneurs in Hawaii have proved that "you don't have to be big" to make it overseas.
"In some cases being small is an advantage because you can see an opportunity and pursue it a lot quicker," Bahar said. "If you have someone with the attitude like Tom has, and you have a good product, you open the doors and set them loose."
For small companies in particular, a good partner abroad is essential, Bahar and Yokoyama agreed.
Yokoyama used a state trade mission and a former business contact to find his partners.
In the Philippines, he contacted a former IBM colleague who had a copyright on computerized bingo. Yokoyama ended up supplying 250 printout machines for the start of the games in January 1996, which packed a Manila megamall and grossed $1 million by Day 6. Yokoyama expects to see his machines spread through the Philippines and then around the world, even Las Vegas, where he also has a four-person office.
In Vietnam, Yokoyama easily found a partner while on a state trade mission there. "You can't go anywhere without the right partner," Yokoyama said.
For two years he saw little profit but lots of exposure. Describing himself as the only barcode machine authority in the country, he expects orders to start rolling this year as Vietnam's economy takes off.
"The key words are patience and staying-power," Yokoyama emphasized.
He advised businesses to have enough capital to hold out for at least a year with little or no return. During that time expect to make at least two trips to get to know your partner, he said.
Yokoyama also advised using the title of "president" or "CEO" in Asia, where it has impact. In the United States, a less lofty title such as "general manager" works better because it makes your company sound bigger, he said.
Getting there before the competition is also a key into emerging Asian markets. And a good place to head is India, said Virendra Nath, president of HDEP International, which has a three-person headquarters in Honolulu. Nath's off-shore, data-entry company is starting a 50-person operation in India this year.
Regional business experts say India is one of Asia's next economic tigers. Within 20 years its population is predicted to surpass China, providing an enormous labor force and consumer market.
"India is an investment as compelling as any since the end of World War II," Nath said, adding that the country opened its markets in 1991 after "four decades of misguided policies."
Nath's company started in 1984 with help from the state's Kaimuki Technology Center and got a head start in the emerging Philippine economy.
HDEP International employs 300 people there to enter data into computer systems for U.S. mainland companies.
Nath advised small companies to continually look for niches.
Two years ago Nath's company started putting information on 500,000 companies in eight Asian countries into a database.
Now he has customers in 31 countries using that data, and HDEP is adding information on companies in two more countries: China and India.
The company has also created a fax broadcasting system for customers.
"You're only limited by your imagination," Nath said.
Here are a few tips for businesses interested in expanding into Asia, from H. Ray Starling, president of HEI Power Corp. International, which has projects in Guam and the Philippines.
Get a solid partner in the target country who understands local politics and culture and complements your business. State trade missions are a good way to find a partner.