Yakiniku Sakai Holdings Co., Ltd. President and CEO Hitoshi Takahashi

We will spread the authentic deliciousness of artisan-made food to the world.

President and CEO of Yakiniku Sakai Holdings Co., Ltd.　Hitoshi Takahashi　(Takahashi Hitoshi)

■ Profile

Born in 1968 in Matsusaka City, Mie Prefecture, Sakai grew up with parents who ran a Japanese restaurant, fostering an interest in food. After graduating from university, he worked for Mie Bank (now Sanjusan Bank) for three years. He then began his career in the food and beverage industry. After serving as representative director of a national chain bakery, Sakai became president of Yakiniku Sakai Holdings, which operates 76 brands and over 450 restaurants, in June 2023.

Yakiniku Sakai Holdings Co., Ltd. operates a wide range of restaurants, including sushi, izakaya, Chinese, Italian, and French cuisine, in addition to its main business of yakiniku. Takahashi, who became president in June last year, spoke passionately about his goal of expanding nationwide and overseas by rebranding existing brands. We spoke in detail about Takahashi's career history, the strengths of Yakiniku Sakai HD, and its management strategy.

During my university years, I lived by the motto of "play hard." I joined a ski club and often went to the snowy mountains with my friends. My parents also ran a Japanese restaurant, so I was familiar with management and business from an early age. Watching my father work as a craftsman from morning until night, even as a child I thought it must have been quite tough. Knowing how difficult management and business can be, my own dream was to wear a stylish suit on weekdays and work as a salaryman. After that, I started job hunting and looked at various companies, but I found that I was most interested in sales work, which involves interacting with people, and ultimately ended up working at a local bank.

■The reasons for his decision to go independent were his father and studying abroad

My responsibilities at the bank included corporate lending and sales, and I was involved in a wide range of banker duties. However, I left the bank after three years and started my own business at the age of 24. I started a pizza delivery business, which was becoming popular in Japan at the time. You might be wondering, "Why would someone who was a banker until recently suddenly go into the restaurant business?" However, my father was in the restaurant business, and as I entered the workforce, I gradually began to yearn for independence. Another major catalyst for starting my own business was my study abroad in Los Angeles during college. While there, I became friends with a Japanese person and visited his home, which turned out to be a huge mansion in Beverly Hills. I wondered, "Who on earth is this guy?" until I discovered that it was actually Atsushi Sakurada, the founder of MOS Burger. Meeting Sakurada also inspired me to dream of one day becoming a leader in revitalizing Japan's restaurant industry.

■Management strategy for nationwide and overseas expansion

Since then, I have been fully committed to food-related work, including founding a bakery chain ("513 Bakery," originating in Mie Prefecture, with 12 locations, including Tokyo) and a company that operates "Ginza Nishikawa," a premium bread specialty store with locations throughout Japan, the United States, and China. My motivation for becoming president of this company was to further grow as a manager on this path of success. Having been involved in numerous food and beverage businesses, starting with pizza delivery, I found the challenge of working for a company that could be described as a "general trading company for the restaurant industry" to be worthwhile. Our company currently operates 76 brands, including yakiniku, sushi, izakaya, and other restaurants. We offer "76 different flavors," so to speak. Many of these brands have histories and stories, and in order to expand nationwide and internationally, we needed to reinvent these historic businesses and long-established brands into Reiwa-era versions. I envisioned each of these strategies as individual dots, and I believed that connecting them would ensure success.
Our company has many strengths, but our multi-brand development is a major point. For example, for our core yakiniku restaurant, we offer two formats: an order buffet and ordering by menu item. We divide our customer base into detailed segments, such as suburban and urban locations, and target casual restaurants for the masses and high-end restaurants for high-class customers, so that we can approach them according to their needs. This allows customers to choose our company based on their purpose, preventing cannibalization. We are also working to streamline operations through digitalization, and have completed the introduction of delivery robots, table ordering using tablets, and mobile ordering.
Going forward, we would like to further focus on our franchise business. Currently, approximately one-third of our restaurants are franchised, but franchising is essential to efficiently increasing the number of restaurants and profits. While the term "franchise" may sound familiar to students, it's difficult to grasp its true meaning. However, if successful, it is a business that can rapidly expand the number of restaurants for both franchisees and us as headquarters. For our company, the fact that franchisees are responsible for managing and developing the human resources required for restaurant operations is a major benefit. Furthermore, two key factors in opening a restaurant are "restaurant management" and "product development." Menu development, in particular, is difficult without expertise, and we believe that being able to leave this part to headquarters is the greatest benefit for franchisees. By leveraging these two strengths, we can provide comprehensive support, which allows us to see the possibility of expanding nationwide and overseas.

■ Each and every one of us is a "craftsman"

Our future vision is to increase the recognition of our many restaurant brands and develop them into national brands. Currently, some brands are concentrated in specific regions, such as Western Japan and Eastern Japan, but we would like to expand these brands to other areas and lead to nationwide expansion. We hope that our brand will be the first thing that comes to mind when customers dine out for yakiniku, izakaya, sushi, or other dining experiences. We also hope to increase awareness of our company, so that when customers think of dining out, they think of Yakiniku Sakai Holdings. Furthermore, people remain the most important management resource in the restaurant industry. As a company, each and every employee will continue to possess craftsmanship and bring happiness to customers through "food." Bringing smiles to customers' faces through "food." Our dream is for all of our staff to carry this passion in their hearts and deliver delicious food, heartfelt service, and a relaxing atmosphere worldwide.

■Message to university students

I'm sure you've all experienced countless happy moments from meals. At our company, we work hard every day to bring that happiness to our customers. Each of our staff members creates happiness in their own way: some cook, others serve customers, some develop new menus, design posters, and others are in charge of advertising. However, as a team, we all have one goal: to make our customers happy. I believe working in the restaurant industry is my calling. It's a job I love. As university students, your greatest asset is undoubtedly your "infinite possibilities." Pursue those possibilities to the fullest. If you're interested, give it a try. I believe you'll discover your ideal self through these diverse experiences. I look forward to seeing you succeed in society.

Student Newspaper Online, May 29, 2024, Interview by Miyu Ito, 4th year student at Keio University

Musashino University, 4th year student Nishiyama Ryusei / Keio University, 4th year student Ito Miyu / Hosei University, 2nd year student Sakai Riria / Rikkyo University, 4th year student Sudo Kakuto