Episode #65
The Success That Didn't Transfer
She built one of Japan's leading organic food brands from a $2,000 investment at a Tokyo farmers market. Fourteen years later, she moved to New York with her daughter to start over — alone, in a language she taught herself, in a market she thought she understood. She didn't. To enter the U.S. market and position for an IPO, she hired three C-suite executives and built the structure she believed the next chapter required. Within a year, the overhead nearly bankrupted the company. The executives weren't the whole problem. The assumptions underneath the decision were — and she didn't see it until it had cost her a year. This conversation is about building in a market you don't fully understand yet, the cost of trusting a playbook past its expiration date, and the moment that actually kept her going. Better Than Butter: betterthanbutterusa.com Midori on Instagram: @midori_betterthan_butter Midori on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/midori-sato If you recognized something in this conversation — joesteele.com . Follow Decision State on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube. CHAPTERS 0:00 — She almost went bankrupt the next day 0:30 — From $2,000 to 3,000 stores 4:27 — The Silicon Valley trip that changed everything 5:50 — Moving to New York: what she thought vs. what she found 9:30 — Building the executive structure 11:44 — When she realized the hires were wrong 16:13 — Four bankruptcies 20:22 — The daughter decision 23:33 — Taylor and the shift 26:52 — Building the U.S. chapter differently 28:44 — Better Than Butter: where to find it
