Self-Introduction

Hello. My name is Sungmin Choi, responsible for sales in Korea and Japan at Colorkrew (hereafter, Colorkrew). After being discharged from the Air Force Military Police, I came to Japan alone in December 2010 without speaking a word of Japanese, balancing studies with part-time jobs such as Korean language instructors. After graduating from university in March 2018, I joined Colorkrew in April of the same year as a sales representative. After joining, I spent 4 years and 3 months building Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services, and Google Cloud Platform, handling operations solution sales, and managing sales of our company's cloud-based systems including the in-house SNS-based goal management system 'Goalous,' with many experiences appearing at both in-house and external seminars. In July 2022, wanting to contribute to the improvement of cashless adoption in Japanese society, I transferred to another company in Japan, and after 1 year and 8 months of experience in tablet POS system sales and customer success, I returned to Color Crew in March 2024.

Why I Returned to Color Crew

There are three main reasons why I returned despite quitting Color Crew.

First is the CEO, Keiji Nakamura. He supported me not only from when I graduated from university and joined until I quit, but also after I left, and believed in my potential. He also taught me directly about the mindset and actions of a businessman and salesperson, and even became my mentor when it came to my private life. So someday, I wanted to work with him again and be of some help to him.

The second is entering the Korean market. Among Color Crew's Code of Conduct is called Go Global, which aims to expand not only in Japan and Brazil where we currently operate but also into countries around the world. By returning to Color Crew, I believed I could challenge the Korean market in 2024 in a way that only I can do. I was convinced that Color Crew's cloud-based system, used by over 800 Japanese clients, including the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, could also benefit Korean companies, and I believed that only I, who was born and raised in Korea and know Korea and Japan well, could play that role.

The third is the environment and technological capabilities of Color Crew. As you can see from the Colour Crew's Code of Conduct mentioned above—Be Open, Stay Uncomfortable, Kizuna/Kinship, Speak Out—Colour Crew provides an environment where employees can share company information and activities in real time, always take ownership and take on challenges, and openly express their thoughts and opinions. Having experienced other companies in Japan, I deeply felt how blessed it is to work at Colour Crew. Additionally, Colour Crew is recognized for its high technical capabilities by clients in Japan, Brazil, the United States, and Singapore who use cloud-based systems including the following three points. Of course, Korean language support is also available, so I firmly believe this will be very helpful to Korean companies as well.

◎ Colorkrew Biz, a general affairs support solution that enables asset management and office seat management ◎ Colorkrew Intra, an internal portal that allows free customization ◎ Colorkrew Workflows, a simple and flexible workflow system ※ Many new systems to be announced later

Current Status of Entry into the Korean Market

It is taking longer than expected to enter the Korean market. To be honest, before rejoining, I never imagined I would face such difficulties. Starting from scratch, meeting Korean companies and Korean people is extremely difficult, but I am taking on every possible means and approach to help Korean companies as quickly as possible.

Future Plans and Aspirations

In fact, I've heard comments like 'Isn't entering the Korean market too easy?' and 'Why Korea?' but I believe Colorcrew's system will be a great help to Korean companies, and I am confident that together with Colorcrew colleagues, we can definitely succeed in entering the Korean market. I plan to write a separate blog about Colorcrew's system, so please look forward to it.

Finally, I will end by sharing a quote from Dirk Nowitzki, a former NBA player I admire. Thank you for reading until the end. 'All dreams are crazy until they come true.'