ABSTRACT
Over the past thirty years, Japan has been a particularly difficult place for entrepreneurship. Big market players, a bias toward group affiliation, limited access to capital, and pervasive, restrictive regulations have been formidable obstacles to individuals with ideas, energy, and an independent, entrepreneurial spirit. Not surprisingly, the number of such individuals has been small, and the few success stories are tales of mavericks and outsiders who bucked the system, often after spending time outside Japan.
