Empower Inc. President and CEO Shunsuke Masui

"Be responsible and master one thing"

Empower Inc. President and CEO Shunsuke Masui

■ Profile
Born in Osaka Prefecture on September 28, 1973. After graduating from university, he joined a major telecommunications company and worked in corporate and individual sales.
After serving as representative of several affiliated companies, he started a call center business in 2011 and later sold the business.
In 2016, he became the representative director of Empower Co., Ltd.
In 2021, he published the book "Become a CEO if you have no education or connections!"

There is a market that is currently experiencing rapid growth. That market is the reuse market. Among these, Kaitori Daikichi has significantly increased both its business performance and the number of franchise owners. What makes the reuse market, where second-hand goods are bought and sold for reuse, so appealing? We spoke with Shunsuke Masui, president of Empower, the company that operates Kaitori Daikichi, which is driving the growth of the reuse market.

During my school days, I focused on music and tennis. I studied piano until junior high school, and I still play Chopin and other pieces. Through piano lessons, I learned to keep playing until I could play, and to never give up until I saw results. This spirit lives on in my business life today. In high school, I devoted myself to tennis. As it was my first time trying out tennis, I was the worst among the members of my team, who had been playing tennis since junior high school. I couldn't hit the ball at all, and I was far from being a regular player. However, I went to morning practice and practiced my swing every day. By putting in the effort that no one else was making, I was one of the four players out of 50 to be selected as a regular player. From my experiences with piano and tennis, I learned that results come from sticking to one thing without giving up. Focusing on one thing, no matter what it was, and pursuing it to the fullest is something I still use today.

■Joining a merit-based company

After graduating from university, I went into the telecommunications industry. I wanted to work for a company that didn't have a seniority-based culture, so I decided to join Hikari Tsushin, which at the time was unusual in that it advocated a "meritocracy." After that, I served as president of a subsidiary of Hikari Tsushin, before starting a company that sold call center lines and working there for several years. I then joined Empower in 2016.

■ Rapid growth in business performance

Empower currently operates 1200 "Kaitori Daikichi" stores nationwide, specializing in purchasing. 168 stores are directly managed (as of March 2025), and the rest are franchised (FC) stores. The business model involves purchasing products from individual customers and then selling them to businesses, overseas customers, and buyers. The company procures goods in three ways: in-store purchasing, on-site purchasing, and event sales where it sets up booths in shopping malls. When he became president in 2016, there were 200 franchised stores and no directly managed stores.

However, amidst fierce competition, we needed to continue providing our franchisee owners with the latest know-how, and we expanded our directly managed stores to increase our know-how and knowledge base. We couldn't let our franchisee owners, whose lives depend on it, fail. We also opened approximately 80 directly managed stores. As a result, our franchisee numbers, which at the time were one or two per month, have now grown to 50 per month. In particular, the number of stores has increased dramatically over the past three years. Last year, we came in second, just behind 7-Eleven, in the annual franchisee growth rate ranking. This year, we expanded at a pace exceeding last year's total in the first half alone, so we expect Kaitori Daikichi to take the top spot in the next ranking. Our business performance has also grown significantly, with sales growing from 65 billion yen four years ago to 81 billion yen this fiscal year.

The reason why owners choose us is because of our store retention rate and growing market. We focus on valuing our customers and are particular about repeat business, which results in a high store retention rate. Additionally, the reuse market, currently worth 3 trillion yen, is expected to grow to 4 trillion yen by 2030, even if we only consider the actual market. Currently, the reuse utilization rate is only 30%. If we include the potential market that has never used reuse, the market size will be 60 trillion yen. There is potential for another 20 times the current 3 trillion yen. This is a rare industry where the market is growing, even as all markets shrink due to the declining birthrate and aging population.

The biggest costs in a store business are rent and labor costs. However, Kaitori Daikichi can be run on a low rent of 16.5 square meters, with only one person involved and no labor costs. The average gross profit of a directly managed store is 8.5 million yen per month, and the low rent and labor costs are what make it so appealing to become a Kaitori Daikichi owner.

■ People you want to work with

I would like to work with people who will lead Empower in the future. To that end, we hire people who are motivated, capable, and have potential for the future. People with potential are those who are humble, honest, and don't blame others. These people have great potential for growth in the future. There are many tough things when you enter society. I would like to work with people who can think positively about everything and who are willing to sacrifice themselves to focus on the business.

■ Turned down the draft pick and joined the company

Masahiro Kato, one of the new graduates who joined the company, turned down a professional baseball draft pick to join us. He had received job offers from major general trading companies and others, but he chose us because he was passionate about his work and was deeply moved by our company's vision. He chose our company over a large corporation because he believed Empower would provide an environment that would help him develop himself.

■ Became a director at age 27

We want to give responsibility to young people and help the company grow. That's why three years ago, we promoted Shimizu, who was 27 years old at the time, to director. Directors are selected to clarify responsibility for the company's strategy and budget. The key factors in making a decision are how committed the person is and how well they achieve results. Director Shimizu possesses both of these qualities, which is why we were able to entrust him with the role of director.

■Message to university students

I want all university students to believe in their own potential and not be afraid to take on new challenges. It's important to believe in yourself by working harder and thinking harder than anyone else. If you're taking on a goal that's bigger than anyone else's, you'll be able to believe in yourself with confidence. I recommend that you try to master one thing during your time as a student, whatever it may be.

Interviewed by Student Newspaper Online on October 29, 2024 by Yoshikazu Kamei, a third-year student at Chuo University