Corporate groups travelling to Japan usually get the logistics right and the etiquette wrong, and the etiquette is what the Japanese counterparts remember. None of it is difficult. All of it is specific, and almost none of it is obvious to a delegate arriving from a market where business is conducted informally.
This is the brief we supply to MICE and incentive groups before departure, in the order the situations actually occur.
Business cards — meishi
The card exchange is the first thing that happens in any Japanese business meeting, and it is treated as an extension of the person, not a piece of stationery.
- Bring far more than you think. Two hundred for a week is not excessive for a senior delegate.
- Have one side printed in Japanese. This is the single highest-value preparation item and it takes a week to arrange. Present the Japanese side facing the recipient.
- Offer and receive with both hands, with a slight bow, and say your name and company as you do.
- Read the card you receive. Actually read it. Then place it on the table in front of you, arranged to match the seating, for the duration of the meeting.
- Never write on a card in front of the giver, put it straight in a back pocket, or slide it across the table.
Getting this one ritual right buys a great deal of goodwill, and getting it wrong is noticed immediately.
Seating and hierarchy
Japanese meeting rooms have a kamiza (seat of honour) and a shimoza (lower seat), determined by distance from the door — furthest from the entrance is most senior. The same logic applies in restaurants, cars and lifts.
Delegates do not need to master this. They need to wait to be shown where to sit, which handles every case. The one thing to avoid is a senior visitor cheerfully taking the nearest chair.
Hierarchy also governs who speaks. In a Japanese delegation, the most senior person may say very little and the answer may come from someone junior — this is normal, not a snub, and the decision still rests where the seating says it does.
Bowing, and how much to worry about it
Far less than delegates fear. Foreign visitors are not expected to bow correctly, and an attempted deep formal bow usually looks worse than a nod.
- A short bow from the waist, around fifteen degrees, covers greetings and thanks.
- Do not combine a bow with a handshake in one motion; pick one, and let the Japanese side lead.
- Deeper and longer bows signal apology or serious gratitude. Delegates do not need this and should not improvise it.
Gifts — omiyage
Gift-giving is a genuine business norm rather than a courtesy, and corporate groups should arrive prepared.
- Bring something regional from home, wrapped, of modest value. Provenance matters more than price — a good local product beats an expensive generic one.
- Give at the end of the meeting, not the start, and present with both hands.
- Expect it to be set aside unopened. This is polite, not disinterest.
- Avoid anything in sets of four (the word for four sounds like the word for death), anything sharp for a new relationship, and heavily branded corporate merchandise as the sole gift.
- Reciprocate. If your counterparts give the group something, the group should have something to give back.
The evening — nomikai
The after-hours dinner is often where the real relationship forms, and it operates by different rules from the meeting.
- Pour for others, not yourself. Watch neighbours' glasses; they will watch yours.
- Wait for the first toast — kanpai — before drinking.
- Not drinking is fine. Nobody needs to explain a soft drink, and the modern Japanese workplace has moved a long way on this. Delegates who do not drink should still attend.
- The tone loosens. Frank conversation at dinner is normal and is not carried into the next morning's meeting.
- Do not tip. Not at dinner, not in taxis, not at hotels. It is not customary and causes confusion. Our first-time travel tips covers the wider set.
Timing, and the things that quietly matter
- Early is on time. Arriving five to ten minutes ahead is the expectation; arriving at the stated minute reads as late.
- Silence is not awkward. Pauses are used for consideration. Filling them is a common foreign mistake.
- "It's difficult" usually means no. Direct refusal is avoided, and delegates should learn to hear the soft version.
- Shoes come off in some meeting rooms, most restaurants with raised floors, and all ryokan. Delegates should wear socks they are content to be seen in.
- Blowing your nose in public is considered unpleasant; stepping out is normal.
How a Japan DMC handles it
For corporate programmes we supply this brief before departure, arrange bilingual card printing in time to matter, place a professional interpreter rather than a sightseeing guide in meetings — a distinction covered in our guides and interpreters guide — advise on appropriate gifts for the specific counterpart, and manage the seating and introductions on the day so nobody has to think about it. Delegates then get to concentrate on the business, which is the entire point of the trip.
FAQ
How do you exchange business cards in Japan? Present and receive with both hands and a slight bow, Japanese side facing the recipient, saying your name and company. Read the card you are given, then place it on the table in front of you for the meeting rather than putting it away. Never write on someone's card in front of them. Have cards printed with a Japanese side — it takes about a week to arrange and is the highest-value piece of preparation.
Do foreign visitors need to bow in Japan? Not precisely. A short nod or a fifteen-degree bow from the waist covers greetings and thanks, and foreign visitors are not expected to bow correctly. Avoid combining a bow with a handshake — let the Japanese side lead.
Should corporate groups bring gifts to Japan? Yes. Regional products from home, wrapped, of modest value, presented with both hands at the end of a meeting rather than the start. Avoid sets of four, sharp objects for a new relationship, and purely branded corporate merchandise. Expect gifts to be set aside unopened, which is polite rather than dismissive.
Is drinking expected at Japanese business dinners? Attendance is expected; drinking is not. Declining alcohol is entirely accepted in the modern Japanese workplace, and no explanation is needed. Do pour for others rather than yourself, and wait for the opening kanpai toast before starting.
Running a corporate programme in Japan? We brief the delegates and staff the room — write to b2b@explera.jp, message the trade desk on WhatsApp at +66 93 656 8090, or register on the B2B portal. Proposals within 24 hours. IATA 96215733, ASTA member 900408341.
