#Japan #Tokyo #Chuzuma Career #Coxin #Urelio

An Innovative Collaboration for Global Market Support

Chuzuma Career Net, headquartered in Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, has announced a strategic partnership with Coxin, based in Shibuya, Tokyo, to enhance the overseas expansion of Japanese food products. At the core of this collaboration is the support service "Urelio" provided by Coxin, specifically through an alpha version trial aimed at gathering insights from expatriate wives living abroad.

Partnership Overview

Chuzuma Career Net boasts a global community network comprising 963 expatriate wives, former expatriates, and pre-expatriates across 53 countries as of May 14, 2025. Utilizing this extensive network, Chuzuma Career Net will conduct market research and collect local information vital for the success of Coxin's "Urelio" service. This partnership not only supports Japanese food manufacturers in their international ventures but also creates new employment opportunities for expatriate women living overseas, leveraging their expertise and skills to forge an innovative career model.

About Chuzuma Career Net

Established in July 2017 and incorporated in April 2025, Chuzuma Career Net is dedicated to creating a specialized community for expatriate wives who relocate due to their spouses' overseas assignments. The organization’s mission is to ensure that the experiences gained by expatriate wives are valued and recognized in society. They actively work towards connecting the period of living abroad with continuing career development, emphasizing the advantages that come from skills like cultural adaptability, flexibility in complex environments, and an international perspective.

Currently, their operations are built on three main pillars: "Specialist Human Resource Matching," "Creating Female Role Models," and "Supporting Overseas Expansion." In 2023, the company established the "Expatriate Wives Career Research Institute" and was selected as a RED finalist in the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's Unicorn Creation Business Contest in 2024.

Through incorporation, Chuzuma Career Net seeks to shift the perception that the activities of expatriate wives equate to volunteer work, attaching clear economic value to their contributions. The organization aims to foster a society where women have the opportunity to work whenever and wherever they choose, thereby contributing to sustained career development through the autonomy and opportunities provided to expatriate wives.

Background and Significance of the Partnership

In an increasingly globalized world, understanding local culture and markets is crucial for companies venturing abroad. Particularly in the food export sector, grasping local food culture and consumer preferences is key to success. Traditional market research methods are often expensive and time-consuming, presenting significant barriers for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Members of Chuzuma Career Net are well-acquainted with local living through their roles as expatriates, possessing a wealth of experiences and specialized knowledge. They are not merely information gatherers; they are nuanced understanders of local culture who can serve as a bridge between Japan and the host country.

This collaboration presents innovative solutions to these challenges. Members of Chuzuma Career Net will act as professionals well-versed in local living, providing a continuous stream of high-quality market information based on their valuable insights. This includes retail store investigations, consumer interviews, and food culture reports, thereby strengthening the market analysis processes of Urelio. Consequently, Japanese food manufacturers will be enabled to develop efficient and effective overseas expansion strategies.

At the same time, this initiative creates a new work model that recognizes the expertise gained from local experiences. By offering opportunities that allow expatriate wives to utilize their professional knowledge and skills while prioritizing family time, it opens new career pathways that dismantle the traditional dilemma of choosing between career and family.

Through this partnership, Chuzuma Career Net envisions a society where the experiences and expertise of expatriate wives are properly acknowledged and utilized. By addressing both the support for Japanese companies' international expansion and the career development of expatriate wives, this initiative aims to create significant value for all stakeholders involved.

Future Development

Moving forward, Chuzuma Career Net and Coxin plan to validate and enhance the effectiveness of the Urelio alpha version trial. They are focused on improving the service based on feedback from their members while also boosting participant satisfaction.

In the long run, both companies are considering expansion into industries beyond food, as well as providing comprehensive solutions for Japanese companies’ overseas activities. Leveraging their respective strengths, they aim to broaden their business scope while contributing to the resolution of social issues related to global market support for Japanese firms and the creation of new work opportunities for expatriate wives.

Statement from Chuzuma Career Net's President

The partnership between Chuzuma Career Net and Coxin represents a groundbreaking step in directly linking the expertise and local experiences of expatriate wives living abroad to the social value of Japanese companies' international expansion. Since our inception, we have operated under the belief that "the expatriate period should not hinder one's career continuity." Following our incorporation, this collaboration marks the beginning of a new stage in actualizing that philosophy within a concrete business model.

The insights and experiences of expatriate wives provide invaluable assets for the overseas expansion of Japanese food products. We are excited about the potential to create new career pathways that allow them to leverage their skills and knowledge through flexible working arrangements that are not confined by location or time.

Through our incorporation and this partnership, we are confident that we are moving closer to changing the traditional perception of expatriate wives' activities as mere volunteer work, towards enabling a society where they can pursue fulfilling careers even while living abroad. Our unwavering mission is to realize a world where the experiences of expatriate wives are recognized as valuable assets in society.