A New Era for the Sake Industry in Japan and Beyond

A New Era for the Sake Industry in Japan and Beyond: The Case of Award-Winning Dassai and Asahi Shuzo
Tuesday, February 7, 2023 | 6:00 – 7:15 PM (Reception to follow)
Room 820, Kravis Hall, Columbia Business School

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Featuring: Hiroshi Sakurai, Chairman, Asahi Shuzo Co., Ltd.

Moderator: David E. Weinstein, Director, CJEB; Carl S. Shoup Professor of the Japanese Economy, Columbia University

Topics to be covered:

• The difficulties of continuing a family business
• How to overcome geographic challenges
• Shifting from a red ocean market to a blue ocean market
• Coexisting with farmers and others (to create profit together)
• The pursuit of high-quality products
• The necessity and importance of Japanese time-honored, artisanal, and meticulous processes
• Dassai in NY and DASSAI BLUE

About the Speaker:

Hiroshi Sakurai is Chairman of Asahi Shuzo Co., Ltd. He was born in 1950 in Shuto-cho (Currently Iwakuni city), Yamaguchi Prefecture. After graduating from Matsuyama University of Commerce (Currently Matsuyama University) in 1973 and training at Nishinomiya Shuzo Co., Ltd. (Currently Nihonsakari Co., Ltd.), he joined his family’s company Asahi Shuzo in 1976 but left after a conflict with his father. In 1984, Mr. Sakurai returned to the family business after his father’s sudden passing and rebuilt the company by pivoting to focus on the development of Junmai Daiginjo “Dassai.” He has been in his current position since 2016. Mr. Sakurai continues to lead the company’s growth by breaking with industry norms through innovative ideas such as four-season brewing by regular employees rather than traditional sake brewers as he persists in his pursuit to produce tasty sake. In April 2018, he opened a joint store with Joël Robuchon in Paris, and a brewery in Hyde Park, New York is under construction (scheduled for completion in Spring 2023). Mr. Sakurai is an internationally recognized business leader, having won the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Japan award in 2021.

Special Notes:

● Advance registration is required to attend this event.

● This in-person-only event is open to the public and will not be live streamed. Please note registration does not guarantee a seat.

● Please be advised that this event may be photographed, so your image may appear on our website or in CJEB materials later. If this is an issue, please let us know.

● Please note that due to current University guidelines in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, all visitors must have their primary series of COVID-19 vaccination and be prepared to show proof if asked.