As an exchange student at Kapiti College at 14 years old, Mayu Suzuki helped her family to start what is now a successful business exporting high quality mānuka honey to Japan. Mayu shares how she is influenced by Māori culture and the care of future generations in driving  how her business operates on its three pillars: care, kindness (“mariri”) and honesty

If you enjoyed this episode and it inspired you in some way, we’d love to hear about it and know your biggest takeaway. Head over to Apple Podcasts to leave a review and we’d love it if you would come and say hi over on @jandalsinjapan on Instagram.

In this episode you’ll hear:

• How Mayu found her first supplier of manuka honey at 17 years old after a rummage in her pantry!
• The differences between online platforms such as Rakuten and Amazon
• The importance of crafting a story for your product
• Mayu’s predictions for the future and planning for the next 300 (yes 300!) years

About Mayu:

Mayu is a business and cultural bridge between Japan & New Zealand.

Born in Japan, raised in Japan/New Zealand, currently calling Te Whanganui-a-Tara (Wellington), home.

During the daytime Mayu is the Managing Director of mariri New Zealand delivering the taonga (treasured possessions) of Aotearoa New Zealand to Japanese customers on e-platforms.

Mayu is also heavily involved in organising the Japan Festival Wellington - one of the biggest biennial events in the coolest little Capital, spreading her love of Japan.

She is director and founder of maririNZ brand which is a family-owned business based in Hokkaido Japan. Their products include manuka honey, avocado/olive oil, bee-related products and cosmetics. 

Their business kicked off 15 years ago... on Rakuten, Yahoo, Amazon and its official marketplaces.

Mayu went to Kapiti College and Victoria University and has a deep understanding of kiwi-ness as a Japanese person. Her motto is "being a bridge between Japan / NZ and sharing Kiwi-kindness with Japan".

Mayu is an experienced hand for all things Japan being born in Japan and is a fully bicultural Kiwi Japanese with an incredibly deep insight into both cultures and she truly knows how to be successful in business in the land of the long white cloud AND the land of the rising sun. 

Connect with Mayu:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayusuzuki/

https://www.mariri-nz.co.jp/

https://www.instagram.com/maririnewzealand/

https://www.facebook.com/maririnz/?fref=ts

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGObHVeEKg9hyK3a2EeAn2Q 

Links

Rakuten University: https://university.rakuten.co.jp/ 

Connect with Jayne and Catherine

Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/company/jandals-in-japan-podcast/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jandalsinjapan/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jandalsinjapan