Daimu Kawai, President and CEO of Livin Technologies Co., Ltd.

From the desire to "make an impact on the world" to becoming a founder

President and CEO of Livin Technologies Co., Ltd.　Kawai Daimu (Daim Kawai)

■ Profile
1975年生まれ
Born in Chiba
Graduated from the Faculty of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture
Kendo 3rd Dan

(Biography)
April 1998: Joined Nichimo Co., Ltd.
July 2000: Joined ValueCommerce Co., Ltd.　
February 2003: Joined CyberAgent, Inc.
January 2004: Founded the company and became Representative Director and President (current position)

Living Technologies Co., Ltd. understands consumer needs and develops services with the mission of "solving social problems in the realm of living and housing through the power of technology." We spoke to the company's president and CEO, Daimu Kawai, about what inspired him to start his own company, his vision for the future, and his message to university students.

I've been practicing kendo since I was in elementary school, and I've always had the habit of respecting etiquette, such as always using honorific language when speaking to older people. Because of this, I decided to enter Tokyo University of Agriculture, which I was accepted into right away, because I didn't like being spoken to in a casual manner by younger people. During my student days, I focused on working part-time jobs at convenience stores and izakayas late at night rather than studying.
It was only after I started job hunting that I began to think about my vision for the future. Although I started looking at jobs in various fields, I couldn't imagine myself actually working, so I began to think about what I wanted to do. Since I was going to devote so much of my life to it, I wanted to accomplish something big that was worth it, and so I decided on a life goal of "making an impact on the world." After considering several occupations that might allow me to achieve this goal, I decided to become an entrepreneur and start a company.

■ Seeking practical experience, he worked for three companies in five years

Believing that I needed practical experience before becoming a manager, I planned to work at three companies over a five-year period where I could learn business know-how before starting my own company. At my first company, Nichimo Co., Ltd., I worked as a sales clerk, which allowed me to learn all practical aspects of the job except for sales. At first, I didn't find the work enjoyable, but I thought it was also necessary to become a manager, so my motivation never waned and I worked hard to learn the job. After that, at my second company, I gained sales experience at ValueCommerce Co., Ltd., an affiliate advertising company, and became a top salesperson. At my third company, I worked as a salesperson at an internet advertising agency, CyberAgent, Inc., where I gained general knowledge of internet marketing.

■Starting a business using experience

When I left the company I was working for and started my own business, I hadn't decided what kind of business I wanted to run. At first, I came up with the idea of ​​a service that would dispatch psychological counselors to companies, but I wasn't able to create the service. After thinking about it, I decided that based on my past experience, I could do it as an online advertising agency, so I started up my own business. When I thought about how to increase sales, I realized that recruiting ability was important for services that offer similar products at similar prices. However, I thought it would be very difficult to catch up with the already well-known major companies in terms of recruiting ability, so I decided that the only way to differentiate myself from other companies was to develop my own services in-house.
From there, we researched areas where there were few proper services or websites despite the high number of searches and strong customer needs, and in about a year and a half we launched four new services: a real estate appraisal website, a graveyard comparison website, a website update service for a monthly fixed fee, and an online apparel shop. One of these, the real estate appraisal website, is now our main business.　

■We are looking for people with initiative, creativity, and foresight

I like independent people who are willing to express their thoughts and opinions about wanting to change something or doing something. Without that kind of desire, I don't think you can move forward with an eye to the future. I want to work with people who can act with a long-term perspective on one or two things, rather than just focusing on the immediate situation, and who can express their own ideas, get others involved, and use their own ideas as the basis for working with their colleagues to achieve their goals.
Our company is committed to creating an environment where it is easy to voice opinions, so we have set up a system similar to a suggestion box so that anyone, whether they are a new graduate or mid-career employee, can give their opinions. Anyone, regardless of their position, can propose anything, from office cleaning to new business plans. Any proposals submitted are always discussed at our weekly management meetings. Furthermore, to encourage new initiatives, we hold a quarterly presentation competition within the company where participants can propose new plans, new service features, and business improvements. If any ideas are found to be good, they are adopted and promoted as part of our business. In fact, proposals for a leaseback comparison service and a menu of renovation inquiries have been adopted and released.

■ Future outlook

First, I would like to list on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Prime Market, and eventually aim to become a company with 1000 employees. This is because I believe that if we can develop a business that requires 1000 people to operate, we will have the power to change people's behavior patterns around the world. I believe that this will bring us closer to the goal I set as a university student: to "make a big impact on the world." To achieve this, in addition to expanding our existing services, we are focusing on creating second and third pillars of revenue through the development of new services and M&A.

■Message

What I would like to say to all university students is to first set a goal. It's important to start visualizing now what kind of person you want to become in the end. Having a goal allows you to take action towards it. Without a goal, you may get lost, get influenced by those around you, or not be able to do what you really want to do.
The other thing is "persistence." It's quite difficult to keep making consistent efforts. Being able to continue doing something every day without skipping is a talent, and at the same time, it will always bring you some big return somewhere. When you're young, you have "flexibility." You may be able to continue doing things that at first seemed unsuitable or impossible for you, and you may even make new discoveries. I think it's very important to increase the things you can do while you're young, flexible, and have the time.

Interviewed by Student Newspaper Online on November 2, 2022 by Natsumi Nakajima, a third-year student at Senshu University and Jinto Tsunoda, a second-year student at Seikei University