What's so great about this obscure company in Chofu, Tokyo, that Google spotted?

Da Vinci News. Japanese company that surprised Google (Kodansha + Alpha Shinsho)" (Hiroko Yamakawa/Kodansha) 　 　I didn't even know there was such a company! ...There are many people who think so when they read this book. Whether it's good or bad, the title of "The Japanese who surprised Google (Kodansha + Alpha Shinsho)" (Hiroko Yamakawa/Kodansha) doesn't live up to its title. Admittedly, the "Beforde Inc." featured in this book is mostly obscure to the public. However, it is an ultra-global company that the vice president of Google himself spoke to directly from the United States (the author is the president of the company, by the way). 　 　Beforde, headquartered in Chofu, Tokyo, is, simply put, an e-commerce (e-commerce) site operator. The company deals in used cars and auto parts. However, the company's customers are all over the world, not including Japan, and it currently exports about 1.2 million used cars a year, accounting for more than 10% of the total. The company is particularly strong in Africa, with a market share of more than 30% in seven countries, including Tanzania and Zambia, and has transactions with 125 countries, mainly in emerging and developing countries such as Mongolia and the Bahamas. 　 　The Vice President of Google is here precisely because Bie Forde is in the top 10 of search rankings in several African countries, a "mystery" that ranks alongside the likes of Facebook, Google, Yahoo and YouTube (and Bie Forde is the only EC site to do so). Of course, the vice president must have wondered who the hell he was. 　 　This book, which looks back on the journey to date and reveals the secrets of Beforde's business, is full of useful business know-how and ideas as well as the little-known reality of the used car market. Above all, there is much to learn from the author's toughness to face failure head-on, and there is no doubt that their success is due to their positive attitude of "taking on any challenge" and "not giving up even when adversity strikes". 　 　But specifically why have they been so successful? 　 　First of all, a major factor was the use of an e-commerce site to convert used car exports from a business-to-business transaction with local dealers to a direct transaction with users. As long as you have an internet environment, you can order 24 hours a day from anywhere in the world, and the cost can be reduced because there are no middlemen to deal with. Of the 173 employees, 54 are non-Japanese. In addition, the site has a wide range of nationalities (26 countries), which means that visitors from any country can conduct business in their native language. These initiatives, which give customers a sense of security, have certainly played a role in the increase in orders. 　 　In addition, the company has invested heavily in the development of the IT environment and created a system that allows all employees to share information. The progress, settlement, current location of the car, and other details are constantly updated, enabling the company to respond immediately to customer inquiries. This is not uncommon in Japan, but it is significant that the company has made it possible to conduct business overseas, especially in emerging and developing countries. As a result, he won the immense trust of his customers and created an overwhelming situation where customers call in customers. 　 　After overcoming the Lehman and China shocks, Bey Forde has developed a distribution network in Africa, which is a large-scale business. At first glance, the company appears to be nothing more than a small and medium-sized company located in West Tokyo, but it has ambitions to "build a core logistics business in Africa" and "become the Amazon of emerging and developing countries (handling anything other than cars)" in the future. Maybe it's because we are a small business that we are full of such a frontier spirit. I urge all businessmen, especially young people, who are feeling stagnant, to take notice. Japan can still do it and I can still do it! It should inspire such courage. TEXT=ARAI Rie