Profile
I am a U.S. citizen with 14 years of experience working in Japan. Most of my work there involved translation, interpretation, and business communications. I began learning Japanese when I was in high school, so I now have well over 20 years of contact with the language. While majoring in Japanese Language and Literature at the University of Massachusetts, I spent one year on exchange at Hokkaido University, and another semester at Kanazawa University. My first job in Japan was a full-time position in a Japanese/U.S. joint venture that imported and marketed water purification equipment and technology. After a year, I opted to work for them on a part-time basis while pursuing opportunities in other fields. In so doing, I discovered that many small/medium-sized Japanese enterprises needed help with their international business.
I worked on a contractual basis for three other companies, each for more than 10 years. The first that I began working with (and still do) is a foundry in Ishikawa Prefecture that produces bronze castings and bimetal parts for the hydraulic industry. It was there that I learned about the foundry business, the hydraulic industries of Japan, Europe, and the United States, machining and metallurgy. Having heard what I was doing for this firm, a second company, a large manufacturer of partitions and operable walls, asked if they could "borrow" me. They supply Japan's most well-known general contractors with a variety of architectural products and became both the Japanese distributor for a well-known U.S. manufacturer of office furniture and the licensee for the world's largest maker of operable walls. As International Services Manager, I acted as interface for most of their international business. Much of my work involved highly technical engineering and production matters. Three years were spent preparing for a joint venture to produce office furniture in Japan. During this period, I was involved in every aspect of the joint venture, from the basic contract negotiations to plans for plant construction and equipment installation. That was about when Japan's bubble economy burst. Word of mouth resulted in more work for a large merchandiser dealing in traditional Japanese bronzes, architectural materials, and other artwork. Suddenly, I was very busy. I handled the international sales of their products and was involved in the procurement of various products from all over the world.
In my spare time, throughout this period, I freelanced for several publishers, graphic design firms, and various businesses, including a company specializing in architectural CAD software development. During my last few years in Japan, I even fulfilled a dream I had had of managing my own restaurant. Meant at first to be a hobby, and open only on weekends, it turned out to be extraordinarily successful.
Currently, I solicit Japanese to English translations mostly from agencies in Japan and the United States. I also maintain a position as International Sales Representative for Akashi Gohdoh Inc., a foundry and producer of bimetal parts for the world's hydraulic industries, a relationship that has now entered its 17th year.
I reside in Thailand, where it is warm and the food is spicy.