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Importer Andre Zimmermann is slow to judge but quick to build

Financial data,chocolate, wine

For Swiss Chamber head,‘Life is about learning’

Name: Andre Zimmermann

Title: President, Swiss Chamber ofCommerce and Industry in Japan
URL: https://www.sccij.jp/Hometown: Winterthur, Switzerland
Years in Japan: 36

Leaders & Readers
KERRY FURUKAWACONTRIBUTING WRITER

From heading a financial data firm to setting up the Japan branch of the chocolatier
Lindt, from collecting Georg Jensen silver
to weeding streets on Saturday mornings,
Andre Zimmermann has many professional
and private interests. Currently head of theSwiss Chamber of Industry and Commercein Japan, his latest business venture, ZAC Inc.,
imports Swiss wines and spirits to Japan.
At the same time, the animated Zimmermann is heavily invested in a project to build
synergy between Switzerland and Iizuna, atown in Nagano Prefecture that shares a lot

Zimmermann advises new comers to Japan tokeep an open minded and remain true tothemselves. COSUFIof his home country’s scenic beauty. Theidea is to build a Swiss village with the ultimate aim of creating something unique tothe town in tandem with enhancing Nagano
architecture.
“One of the issues where I scolded Japanis they are destroying local culture and identity. So many villages have become facelessand ugly. The value of old is not recognized,
too much is sacrificed for the sake of convenience. And I said, the rural depopulation
problem is not that young people don’t finda job. The problem is they don’t want to bethere. They only remain because there is aroof and the parents, and if those are gone,then [the young people are] gone too. So,
what you have to think of is to bring identity
back to your place, make people proud to bethere.” Zimmermann said.
His more than 33 years of doing businessin Japan allows him to speak with such passion about the country. After an apprenticeship in fashion, followed by compulsory
military service, Zimmermann needed a
break from Switzerland. So, in 1974 he hit
the road — the Silk Road. His intention wasto visit relatives in Australia, but his travels
over parts of the ancient routes eventually
led him to Japan.
Here he picked up one of his interests: themartial art Shorinji Kempo. During the three
years he spent in Japan then, he earned ablack belt in the practice and met his futurewife. He returned to Switzerland and took
a car mechanic training course, then went
to night school for computer programming.
Later in his life at 58, he earned his MBA at
York St. Jones University, UK.
To this day, his motto is “Lifelong learning,never stop learning.”

When the opportunity arose for him tobecome the Japan managing director of thefinancial data firm Telekurs, Zimmermann
was a bit worried about his readiness. But
he knew one thing for sure: He would learna lot.
“The highlight was to learn how to manage people. And also growing into a business
community on a professional level, whichmeans I also joined the Swiss Chamber ofCommerce right then, but as a total greenhorn in the field, I felt extremely excluded
and not really part of it. That was an incredible learning curve for me. Totally new. Imean, at one stage, depending on the direction of your business or whatever you want
to do for your career, you start to basicallysee the whole picture. At the beginning it’s
just spots you try to grasp, and all of a sudden it becomes round, you see the trees inthe forest.”
Telekurs gave way to jumpstarting theinvestment promotion program for Japanese companies to Switzerland at the Swissembassy in Tokyo. The highlight of thatwork was having Sunstar move its global
headquarter from Japan to Switzerland.
The first Lindt branch opened in Ginza in2008 was a mere 16 square meters. Today
there are 84 Lindt stores in Japan and thecompany employs hundreds of full- andpart-time staffers. He termed his 16 years
with Lindt “a real success.”“At the head office Lindt Japan became theshowcase for the whole Lindt world. Alsovery important is that we were allowed own
packaging, seasonality, all these things. We
even created the Lindor balls sakura and amatcha one — and that actually was a firstin the company that a branch was being

Times Gallery

After living in Japan for three years,
Andre Zimmermann worked with theJapanese company Yamaichi Securities
in his native Switzerland from 1985 to1989. He later moved to Japan as managing director of the Swiss financial data
firm Telekurs, where he worked for 15years. In 2008, after a stint in investment promotion at the Swiss Embassy,
he opened the first Lindt branch inTokyo, as representative director ofLindt & Sprungli Japan Ltd. He worked
with the chocolatier for 16 years andnow imports Swiss wines and spirits
to Japan. He became president of theSwiss Chamber of Commerce in 2019.
His hobbies include cycling, golfing andtraveling.
While he lives by the saying ofnever stop learning, Zimmermann also
encourages people to “first thing in
the morning, smile. That full smile willchange your mind set for the rest of theday.”

COSUFI

allowed to have such local flavors produced
at the headquarters. So, in management
meetings in Switzerland, often they said, ‘Go
and have a look at how Japan is doing it.’”At the chamber, Zimmermann’s mandate
includes improving the business environment in Japan, a pursuit undertaken with
the European Business Council. The Japanese market is not as restrictive as it used tobe, but unresolved matters exist.
“For example, in the food industry, youstill have quite a few food additives that areallowed in the United States and in Europe
but not in Japan. But the question is, is it
good that they are not allowed, or not? We
don’t know. So maybe it’s justified that theJapanese say no. And so, I wouldn’t reallyjudge them on that.”
The openness expressed in that statement has influenced Zimmerman’s inclusive
approach to management over the years.
In addition, he has found that the best way
to encourage sustainability in business is for
managers themselves to practice it. He hates

plastic and he cycles everywhere.
He does strike one as the kind of person
for whom sitting on a train might be too
shackling; he has to move. His hobbies, oneof which is polishing his vintage Mercedes,
are largely centered around the idea ofbasteln, working with your hands. In fact,
he recently hand-crafted a paulownia woodbox to house what he admits might be his“excessive” collection of Georg Jensen silver.
“And just a few days ago, I talked to mywife about a find on an auction, I said, ‘You
know, this is really rare, it’s a toast rack. ... It
looks like an octopus, and you can put thetoast in between. It’s absolutely cute. Butthen, we’re only the two of us. Who needsa toast rack? And I have a gluten allergy. Ican’t even eat bread! You see? Most likely it’sgoing to be too expensive anyway. Regardless, I will put in a quote but don’t think I’ll
get it. So that’s the irrational [aspect] of ahobby.”

Akai
Hiroshima restaurant Akai subtracts distractions

Ambassador of Chile to Japan Ricardo Rojas, Princess Takamado andMinister of the Environment Akihiro Nishimura stand at the commemoration of 125 years of diplomatic relations between Chile andJapan held at the Hotel New Otani in Tokyo. EMBASSY OF CHILEJapan Times Chairperson Minako Suematsu met with 15 students andtheir lecturer, Alexander Ginnan, from Tottori University’s Faculty ofRegional Studies. The students are conducting a research project on thepast and present of the newspaper. THE JAPAN TIMESThe ambassador ofIreland, Damien Cole(center) with visiting
Irish poet Paula
Meehan and Andrew
Fitzsimons, professorof English at Gakushuin University, at thelaunch of Fitzsimons’book “Basho: TheComplete Haiku ofMatsuo Basho”

The ambassador ofArmenia, Areg
Hovhannisian, met
the dean of thePhilology Faculty ofChuo University andthe teaching staff.
The meeting waspreceded by a concert
including works ofprominent Armenian composers.

EMBASSY OF IRELANDEMBASSY OF ARMENIAThe Spanish Chamber of Commerce presented its annual award toJapanese IT company NTT Data Inc. From left: SpCCJ President Fernando Picazo; NTT Data President and CEO Kazuhiro Nishihata;
Ambassador Fidel Sendagorta; and Lladro President Colin Chow. SPCCJOn Nov. 18, Ambassador Aleksandra Kovac of Serbia presents Akie
Abe, the widow of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, with the Orderof the Republic of Serbia that the president of the Republic of Serbia
awarded her husband in June. EMBASSY OF SERBIA

Cuban Ambassador Miguel A. Ramirez (center right) is received by thepresident of the Komeito party, Natsuo Yamaguchi (center left). Bothconfirmed the historic friendly relations between the two peoples andgovernments. EMBASSY OF CUBA

Panamanian Ambassador Carlos Pere inaugurates Panama Geisha
Week, celebrating Panama’s Homeland Month, at the Saza specialty
coffee shop in Tokyo’s Kitte Marunouchi complex on Nov. 16.

Address
4-3-41 Miyajimaguchi,Hatsukaichi-shi,
Hiroshima
https://ya1h900.gorp.jp

TAEKO TERAOCONTRIBUTING WRITER

Hiroshima Prefecture’s Itsuku-shima Shrine
is a well-known World Heritage site. The
restaurant Akai occupies an 80-year-oldhouse on a hill, just under 10 minutes onfoot from the station. Behind the eight-seatcounter, Hiroshima-born chef and owner
Kenji Akai brings his skills to bear. Following an apprenticeship at two well-known
restaurants in France, he won the grandprix in 2017’s RED U-35, a competition forchefs under age 35.
For both lunch and dinner, an omakase
menu is the only option. The first dish isalways a lacquer bowl of okayu, a simple
rice porridge. Additions vary with theseasons. For Akai, the okayu with fresh
peanuts that he serves in fall is a particularly special dish. “I first made it four orfive months after we opened in May 2019,and it was a turning point for me. It came
together with hardly more than water,
salt and the two main ingredients. This
one dish determined the direction of therestaurant.”
The porridge is fragrant with fresh
autumn rice and peanuts. The simplicity ofthe dish leaves no room for culinary trickery. Seasoned with salt and olive oil fromEtajima, it pairs nicely with wine.

EMBASSY OF PANAMA

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Akai keeps the focus on ingredients
throughout the rest of the menu. “I use as
many ingredients from Hiroshima as possible, but not because they’re from Hiroshima. I use them because I’m satisfied withthe quality,” Akai said.
A French-style red wine sauce finallyappears with the main meat dish. “Peopleoften ask me about that,” he said. “SinceI’m aiming for a flavor that’s not ‘too delicious,’ I almost never use French cooking
techniques that concentrate umami. My
cooking doesn’t fit any category. If I had tocategorize it, I’d call it my personal style.”
Although the area is a famous tourist destination, until now it has had no gourmet
restaurants. It is significant that Akai has
chosen this area for his venture.

HIDEHIKO YUZAKI
GOVERNOR OF HIROSHIMATARO MATSUMOTO
MAYOR OF HATSUKAICHIIt is my great pleasure thatAkai, a restaurant createdwith passion by chef Kenji
Akai, has been selected as
one of the prestigious Destination Restaurants 2022.
The charm of Hiroshima Prefecture ispacked into the space of a beautifully refurbished traditional house and a course mealthat uses plenty of ingredients from ourprefecture.
We hope that this award will encourage as many people as possible to visit
Hiroshima Prefecture with the purpose ofenjoying a rich food experience at Akai.

We are very proud thatAkai has been selected asa Destination Restaurant
2022.
When you listen to thevoices of the ingredients and partake ofa dish that adds magic to them, you will
experience a fresh and mysterious feeling.
The chef says his cooking style “doesn’t
fit into any category” and that is without adoubt the right description.
Please enjoy your fill of dishes that drawout the original power of the ingredientsto their utmost limit, paired with carefully
selected wines.