Temporary Japan Lead for SaaS

Hands-on, execution-driven Japan market entry for Series A–C SaaS founders and GTM leaders entering Japan.

based on real execution experience at Stripe, CircleCI, and Airwallex.

Our Services

  • Executive-level ownership for companies requiring a senior leader to drive Japan strategy, regulatory alignment, and launch execution.

    Your interim General Manager — representing Japan both internally and externally, engaging with partners, regulators, and enterprise customers, and owning the full expansion roadmap from strategy to launch.

    What I deliver:

    • Full Japan strategy leadership & execution oversight and governance

    • Regulatory coordination & license/PSP assessments

    • Official external representative for partner & PSP negotiations

    • GTM plan and cross-functional alignment (Product, Legal, Ops, Marketing)

    • Executive hiring support and final candidate calibration at the leadership level

    • Localization & product readiness guidance (incl. regulatory, compliance, market fit)

    • Enterprise executive conversations & strategic ecosystem relationships

    • Japan entity strategy & setup guidance

    • Internal stakeholder alignment at the executive level

    For companies:

    Scaling SaaS/Fintech (Series B–E, ARR $20M–$500M) needing executive-level ownership for Japan expansion.

    Pricing:

    Starting at USD $20k / month

  • Fractional Country Manager for SaaS companies entering Japan.

    Your Japan GTM lead — driving early traction, partnerships, and execution from 0→1.

    What I deliver:

    • Japan GTM (sales, marketing, CS)

    • Buyer interviews & PMF signals

    • Early pipeline and first customers

    • Localization feedback to shape PMF signals and early adoption

    • Early partner exploration, evaluation, and initial conversations

    • Hiring support (Sales/CS)

    • Operations/processes

    • Cross-functional alignment with HQ & Japan

    For companies:

    High-growth SaaS (Series A–C, ARR $5M–$100M) needing hands-on GTM execution, early traction, and local insights.

    Pricing:

    Starting at $10k / month

  • Structured 3–6 month program to validate Japan potential and establish early traction.

    Short-term GTM execution to validate Japan potential and build early momentum.

    What I deliver:

    • ICP refinement

    • PMF signals

    • Buyer insight research

    • Value proposition localization

    • Early outreach

    • “Go / No-Go” recommendation

    Includes: market structure map, ICP segmentation, partner landscape, and GTM concept.

    Pricing:

    USD approx. $5k / month

  • For founders who need lighter support before committing to GTM.

    Monthly advisory call, market insights, Q&A support, and Concise high-leverage guidance for founders and executives.

    One-off Advisory (2h): $700
    Monthly Advisory(4–6h): Starting at USD $1.5k / month

About the founder

A man with glasses and a beard, wearing a light gray sweater and blue jeans, sitting with his arms crossed and smiling at the camera in front of a collage of black-and-white photographs.

Kensuke Morimoto
Temporary Japan Lead for SaaS
ex-Stripe | ex-CircleCI | ex-Airwallex
INSEAD MBA

I specialize in hands-on execution — not advisory — building Japan entry from the inside.

I have spent 10+ years helping global SaaS companies enter and scale in Japan.

At Stripe, I drove Japan GTM and enterprise expansion, contributing to 9× revenue growth through hands-on execution across sales and partnerships.
At CircleCI, I led Japan market entry, building GTM, early customer adoption, and the foundation for long-term growth.
At Airwallex, I owned Japan GTM strategy and launch readiness before product release.

Today, I help Series A–C SaaS founders build predictable Japan traction as a Temporary Japan Lead (fractional) — providing hands-on execution, not advisory.

Learn more

Let’s talk about Japan

📅 Book a 30-min Intro Call

If you're exploring Japan or considering early GTM moves, feel free to schedule a short introductory call.
No preparation needed — happy to share insights from Stripe, CircleCI, and Airwallex.

Most teams book this call to validate market fit, sequencing, or early traction signals.

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Send a quick message.