Two Kagoshima residents selected for ‘Atotsugi Koshien,’ West Japan Block Competition to be held next month
Atsushi Kawanabe, Managing Director of Meiwa Shokuhin
Two business successors from Kagoshima City will participate in the Western Japan block competition of the “Atotsugi Koshien” organized by the Small and Medium Enterprise Agency.
The Atotsugi Koshien is an event where successors of small and medium-sized enterprises under the age of 39 compete with their new business plans. It has been held on a nationwide scale since 2021, with this year marking its third year. In the Western Japan block, covering Chugoku, Shikoku, Kyushu, and Okinawa, 66 people submitted applications for the preliminary document screening, and 15 were selected to qualify for the regional competition. From Kagoshima Prefecture, Atsushi Kawanabe of Meiwa Shokuhin and Hiroki Tsuru of Ochihokai Asahigaoka Gakuen will go to the next round.
Kawanabe, who himself is a working parent raising children, wanted to “ease the busy morning hours” and looked into a service that would help families prepare lunch boxes. He proposed the idea of a lunch box where the side dishes are frozen, and all that is needed is to pack the rice.
Tauru devised a talent management system for people with disabilities. People with disabilities inevitably face hurdles in adapting and adjusting to the workplace and work when they join the workforce. However, the matching, training, and assessment functions are independent of each other and do not function well in a comprehensive manner. He proposed a comprehensive system that integrates each of these functions.
The West Japan Block Competition will be held on February 3 at the Fukuoka Bank head office. The five winners of the competition will participate in the final round, which will take place in Tokyo on March 3. On the Atotsugi Koshien website, a “Like campaign” is currently underway to encourage the participants to “Like” their local successors.
