Kanako Inomata is the Head of Marketing APAC for Zespri International, one of the world's most recognised fresh produce brands. Working remotely from her hometown in Aizu, Fukushima, she leads marketing strategy across Japan, Korea, Singapore, Australia, Vietnam, and beyond.

Kanako reveals the fascinating story behind the Kiwi Brothers characters, which have become so iconic in Japan that they've been rolled out globally across Europe, the Americas, and even back to New Zealand. Whether you're interested in brand building, cross-cultural marketing, or living a purpose-driven career, Kanako's wisdom will resonate.

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In this episode you’ll hear:

• What drew Kanako to move her career to a kiwifruit company from New Zealand
• How Kanako and her team created the now-iconic Kiwi Brothers characters (and now their little sister “Ruby”)
• The importance of being consumer centric marketing
• Kanako’s experience working remotely from Fukushima and leading teams across APAC

About Kanako

An international marketing leader with extensive experience across Consumer, Shopper and Digital marketing. Starting her career at Unilever in Japan, her international marketing experience expanded into South Africa, and now extends across all of Asia Pacific

where she leads a multinational marketing team of Japan, Korea, Singapore, Australia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and India at Zespri International. Representing one of the world’s biggest fresh produce brands, Kanako has led the Zespri marketing team to receive regional recognition including Tangrams Strategy & Effectiveness Awards etc.

Kanako is a talented consumer driven marketer with a strong sense of accountability and business acumen. She is passionate about developing her team’s capability, and contributing positively to society so she can leave the world in a better place.

Jandals in Japan is brought to you by Catherine O’Connell Law and PodLaunch with Jayne

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