
In this episode of The Startup Vagabond, I sit down with Marcel Rasinger—Austrian-Japanese founder of Genten LLC and community leader at Venture Café Tokyo/Yokohama. Marcel shares how he went from advising Austrian companies to launching his own business helping foreign founders enter the Japanese market. We dive into: Why Japan’s startup culture is changing fast How Yokohama is building an ecosystem to rival Tokyo Mistakes foreign startups make when expanding to Japan Tips for navigating Japan’s trust-based business culture Marcel’s favorite startup events in Japan (like Takeoff Tokyo) Whether you're an international founder, global investor, or just curious about Japan’s growing tech scene, this episode is packed with insights on building bridges between cultures and companies.