Apoptosis was founded in December 2022 with the intention of "becoming a top brand recognized around the world for the value that lies in Japan.
Although we are a new company, we have been able to expand our products and build relationships with our partners through the collective knowledge and cooperation of many people.
Apoptosis has decided to redefine its brand concept as "For the History makers."
Apoptosis is a planned death of a cell in order to maintain the individual in a better state. Apoptosis refers to cellular activities such as "petals falling from a flower" or "leaves falling from a tree," and is named after the idea of growth, rest, and re-growth.
Why did we redefine the brand concept and what kind of people found the words behind it?
We are pleased to present a conversation between two members of the Apoptosis team who have completed the project of developing, photographing, designing, and building the brand concept.
------------------------
Ken: President of Apoptosis. Born in a minority group in China. Right in the photo.
Eirik: Apoptosis team member. He is half-Japanese and half-American. Responsible for tagline development. Left in the photo.
------------------------
- A student who suddenly came to the company
Eirik
Hi, I'm Eirik. I go to university in Japan.
I am half Japanese and half American, born and raised in Japan, and in my heart, America and Japan coexist. I guess I am more Japanese on the inside although.
Ken
Are you actually going to school right now?
Eirik
I'm taking a gap year for myself to have a whole year or so to focus solely on business and other studies.
Ken
Is that pretty rare?
Eirik
Not really. Looking at my friends, there are not many of them, but there are quite a few who would like to start a similar things or start their own business. However, when asked if they would even take a leave of absence from school, not many of them would do so.
Ken
I see. Where did that mentality come from?
Eirik
Taking a leave of absence from school affects one's chances of finding a job, and from a traditional point of view, there is a bad impression attached to the value that it is difficult to take the plunge, but in my opinion, I do not feel there are many advantages to graduating early.
For example, there are various advantages to being a student, such as the student discount and the use of university facilities.
If I wanted to spend a year or two concentrating on business, I thought that there would be more advantages to being a student than to graduate and concentrate for a year or two, or to concentrate for a year while I was still a student, so I decided to take the plunge and take a leave of absence.
Ken
Are merits and advantages still important?
Eirik
Perhaps it is my way of life, but I am conscious of getting the maximum results at the lowest possible cost.
The way people look at me when I am a student is different from the way they look at me when I am graduated, and I feel that the ease of living is different. I think that choosing something that has merit is directly related to the ease of living.
Ken
I understand very well. Thank you very much.
Before this interview, I was looking back at how you and I met, and I remember that you first met when you suddenly contacted me one day and came to my office out of the blue. What was that all about?
Eirik
It was sudden for me too, but at the time I was aware that I just had to move on.
A year is a short time, so I was impatiently groping my way through the marketing business when I found Ken, and even though he was doing all kinds of things, he was doing everything perfectly, and I thought, "How in the world is he doing it?" And then I found myself coming here.
Ken
It is amazing that you can take action.
Eirik
I had a feeling that if I went there I would find something, and as it turns out, I wasn't wrong. My life is now at the mercy of Ken-san every day. haha
Ken
I don't know if this is a compliment, but thank you.
Eirik
It is!
- Why "For the History makers." was created.
Ken
I usually work as a freelancer, not as a support, but as a partner in a partnership where I can run the business side by side with the team, and create new businesses. But Apoptosis is a brand that I had an interest personally and started.
In a capitalist society, there are many different ways of doing business, and while some people are able to successfully ride the social wave, there are those who actually suffer the damage.
I thought that structurally, Japan's primary industry was in trouble, and among them, tea farmers were especially affected, so I decided to do what I could do on my own.
I started around July of last year, and many people gathered, many paying customers showed up, I received a lot of support, and I was able to form partnerships with farmers and manufacturers. I felt that it didn't seem to make anyone unhappy, so I made it into a company.
It was Ms. Ozaki, a member, who gave us the name Apoptosis, and the logo is by the designer, Ms. Ogawa. The two of them named and created the name in response to my values.
Until now, we had not defined anything as a brand, but as the number of products we handle and the number of people involved has increased, it has become necessary to clarify the definition of the brand.
Eirik came up with the phrase "For the history makers."
How did you come up with this phrase?
Eirik
The name Apoptosis and the atmosphere of the team from my point of view are two things that have made a big impression on me. I also wanted to keep it simple and concise.
For example, even though I am still a student and have not yet achieved anything, they let me join the team and do things that students cannot experience, and they even let me go to places where executives and other managers would go.
Moreover, the cohesiveness of the team itself is a little different from that of a normal organization, and I could sense firsthand that each individual is committed to giving.
The word "apoptosis" sounds at first glance like a dark meaning of dropping current cells in favor of better ones, but I myself have lived this long thanks to the giving of my parents, friends, siblings, and also people like Ken who have recently become involved in my life.
I felt that the people who give to people are not sufficiently appreciative.
I felt that there were not many brands that cared for these people, and I thought, "Why don't we just become one?"
Thinking of the products' perspectives, there is a lot of research on the health benefits of tea, and it is a beverage that has an essence of health that cannot be achieved by beverages such as alcohol or wine. So from how this team operates for people already, and the product its self, I felt like, "If we don't do it, who will?"
Ken
Super cool man.
Eirik
I really thought that there was no truly suitable brand in the world but this.
Ken
When you actually joined the team, you felt that what we were saying, what we were actually doing, our business, and our products all matched, and that's when you finally came up with this term?
Eirik
Yes. Whether it is a big history or a small history, each one of us is working for the benefit of others, and I hope that from now on we can create a society where this is well-recognized and rewarded, and we are really trying to embody ourselves as a brand that leads the way in this direction.
It may be an exaggeration, but the phrase "For the History makers." came to me when I look back on all the histories I have been involved in.
Ken
I'm thinking the same thing.
I think that people who can give to someone should really be happy, but I believe that actual society is often not like that.
When you do business in Japanese-style capitalism, all the focus is on functionality.
I think there are many Japanese who do things in an unassuming way, "because there are people who need it," or should I say emotionality, but I don't think it is praised very much. I think people who can give to others, even if it means giving up themselves, are really beautiful.
And I feel that such people are the history makers.
I hope those people can find a future where they can pursue health and happiness in eating, and I feel that we can bring a bright future to the Japanese tea industry and other industries by continuing our business.
- To imagine the state of others.
Ken
I think there are a lot of people who, in their normal lives, become unable to imagine other people.
Many people don't even want to think about it because it seems like a hassle, or they just want to be happy for themselves only.
I don't think that is the case with you, Eirik. How did you develop the ability to imagine others?
Eirik
I think for me it is from the experience of having lost so much.
There were periods when I was able to live a wealthy life and periods when I lived a minimal life, and I experienced the separation of my family as well. From there, I became more aware of the importance of people and started to look at others carefully and pay attention to them.
Also, having grown up in both American and Japanese cultures, it was normal for me to see things from a variety of perspectives.
I think I learned from looking at what others were doing and objectively seeing what I was doing.
Ken
I am also a foreigner and lived apart from my family since childhood, so I understand. It makes you extra careful about your surroundings, doesn't it?
Are you in a pretty positive state now because of that experience?
Eirik
I think it's extremely positive.
Even though my family is separated, they are still my family. Even though my parents are separated, I can feel from wherever they are that they are thinking about how much they can my life happier, and I am able to grow even more by experiencing things that other people cannot.
First of all, the magnitude of adversity varies from person to person, and how easy it is to crawl out of it will also vary. However, the mental state and the circumstances created by many factors can make adversity different even for twins, and the magnitude and type of growth will also change. I was still very young at the time, and I am sure there are many people in similar circumstances. I did not look at the adversity logically, so I didn't know how big it is or how easy it is to crawl out of it. But, I was sure that there was no reason why I could not crawl up because I still had a lot of things left that my parents and others had worked hard to leave me with. If that is the case, then I am the one who can crawl up, and I continue to think that I have a responsibility to crawl up for the sake of those who left me the things to give back someday. I appreciate my parents, my brother and my grandparents all, greatly.
I am grateful for my circumstances, but I do not regret them, and I accept that whatever adversity I may face, it will be for my own good in the end, because it will lead to increasing my value by combining the things I already have with the challenges I face.
Ken
Thank you. I'm glad to hear it.
The tea-based products we handle are a genre that has not yet penetrated the world and is not well known, so we often feel that it is difficult. Looking back on our incorporation since last December and the speedy growth we have achieved, I was reminded once again that we have a special organizational structure with a group of really good people.
Both of us were separated from our parents at a sensitive time and experienced the loss of them.
In the Japanese sense, this would be defined as unhappiness, but I feel that both of them have the strength to take something that sounds dark at first glance and, depending on how you look at it, turn it into something positive and turn it into their own driving force.
Almost all the members of the Apoptosis team have worked together with Ken, the president of Apoptosis, at some point in the past.
It must be truly rare to have two such people who say that the Apoptosis team is the embodiment of "For the history makers."
What they were both drinking today.
Comments