Grow Your Business Beyond Borders: Learning from the Experts

Join us for practical, real-world strategies for international business and partnership.

Hear from leading international business experts in a series of 10-minute presentations followed by a Q&A with our panel:

• Rie Hamaguchi, Special Advisor to the Osaka Prefectural Government.
• Bobby Dixit, Ex-banker at Mizuho Financial Group.
• Saori Okada, Registered UK health coach, author, and the Founder & Managing Director of Mogami 最上 Wellness.
• Laurence Mann, Lecturer in Japanese at the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Oxford.
• Steve Ellis, VP Asia at EF Corporate Learning.

Our internationally-renowned speakers will cover many topics, such as:

• Building Trust and Relationships Across Cultures
• Cultural Intelligence and Doing Business with Japan
• Commercial Opportunities in Japan
• UK–Japan Innovation Partnerships
• Japanese Market Trends for 2025 and Beyond

Network with fellow business leaders, academics, and creatives looking to explore cross-cultural collaboration and international growth, especially in the context of UK–Japan relations.

Enjoy food and drink from Japan’s old capital, Kyoto, including coffee, sake, wagashi, and gluten-free snacks.

Explore incredible crafts from some of Japan’s most respected makers working with our partner organisation, Atelier Japan, to reach new markets. This showcase coincides with the launch of our largest retail space yet in Kyoto City's Daimaru at the end of May.

Our further collaborators will also be utilising space to showcase their crafts.

Join us for unmissable insights to grow your business beyond borders.

Steve Ellis

Steve Ellis is VP Asia at EF Corporate Learning, he has worked at senior leadership level building new businesses in EdTech, Publishing, SaaS (HRTech), and consulting for big companies in language and leadership. Passionate about solving business growth challenges, Steve’s approach is centred on finding answers to problems with focus, communication and a sense of humour. Steve champions the powerful network effects of a great team and empowers talent to achieve way beyond what seems possible. He is at his best when working with teams aiming for the sky in line with a shared vision. Navigating uncertainty with confidence, Steve uses language and cultural knowledge to put ideas into action and to execute with experience-led confidence. Outside work, he’s an avid traveller, linguist, and water sports enthusiast.

Bobby Dixit

Bobby Dixit has a proven track record of C-suite engagement, delivering creative solutions to complex problems, novel strategies and innovative business models, coupled with unrivalled experience in negotiating, managing and executing M&A, strategic alliances, joint ventures, cross-border expansion and market entry projects, both as a principal and as an advisor. Having advised the boards of large multinationals to tech start-ups on projects covering technology acquisition, pivots, digital transformation, and corporate growth strategies, he brings an entrepreneurial, solution-seeking mindset with attested team leadership skills. Bobby has acclaimed expertise in negotiating technology & IPR licensing contracts built upon a foundation of in-depth knowledge of a broad spectrum of digital technologies and applications. He is truly multi-cultural, with the ability to bridge cultural, lingual and philosophical gaps across borders and peoples.

Saori Okada

Saori Okada is a UK-registered health coach, author, and founder of Mogami 最上 Wellness. With a Commerce degree from the University of Virginia and certification from the UK International Health Coaching Association (UKIHCA), she blends over 20 years of Japanese calligraphy with commercial acumen to deliver holistic wellness strategies. Saori empowers professionals—from stressed individuals to burnt-out Fortune 500 leadership teams—through customised coaching rooted in traditional Japanese principles like Ikigai and Wabi-Sabi. She’s a keynote speaker, mental health advocate, and co-author of "Tradition Reimagined: A Roadmap for the Future of Japanese Entrepreneurship", presented at Kobe University. Her personal journey is detailed in her book, "Until the Death of Me: A 15-Year Eating Disorder Recovery Journey". Saori is committed to promoting inclusive, holistic health practices that resonate across diverse communities worldwide.

Laurence Mann

Laurence Mann is a Lecturer in Japanese at the University of Oxford and Senior Lecturer in Japanese Language at Oxford Brookes University. He studied Japanese and Classical Chinese at the Universities of Oxford and Kyoto. His research interests focus on meaning making and communication, particularly in poetry and song. Laurence’s most recent publications and projects scope across a wide variety of topics in Japanese and Korean language, including language education, multimodality, intertextuality and popular song. He also collaborates with researchers in experimental linguistics to investigate the cognitive underpinnings of poetic appreciation. He teaches Modern and Classical Japanese translation and welcomes research students in areas related to Japanese songs and poetry, multimodal meaning making, and comparative projects on Korean and Japanese. Laurence is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

Rie Hamaguchi

Rie Hamaguchi is a seasoned global business consultant, educator, and Special Advisor to the Osaka Prefectural Government. As Global Business Development Director at Property & Finance Group UK, she offers strategic expertise in international property, finance, cross-cultural hospitality, and executive mentorship. With a powerful global network spanning Asia, Europe, and the US, Rie facilitates high-level business delegations and VIP engagements across borders. She is Vice Chairman of the Japan Group Institute of Directors and a lecturer at Chuo University, where she shares her insights on leadership and global commerce. Known for her ability to bridge cultural and commercial divides, Rie empowers clients to thrive on the international stage.