Startups are Supported by "Samurai"

Sometimes I think startups are like the "Birdman Rally".

At first, you are full of dreams and hopes, starting off in high spirits, thinking, "Alright, I'm going to fly!"
However, the moment you actually take off, anxiety creeps in—"Wait, I'm not catching the wind like I thought I would?"—and a few seconds later, it turns into terror: "Wait, hold on, isn't this bad?"

Before you know it, the aircraft becomes unstable, and the surface of the lake is rushing up to meet you.

In such a desperate situation, it was the "Samurai" who supported us.

They believed in the future of OSHIRO, promoted the introduction of OSHIRO as a service, and if they were investors, they made the decision to invest, pushing back against the opposition they faced and cheering us on by saying, "This machine will definitely fly!" (By the way, just before flight, I am convinced, "This will definitely fly, it can fly!")

Today, I want to express my gratitude to those Samurai and convey how significant their presence is.
I would really like to thank them in person, but I might get overwhelmed with emotion and burst into tears on the runway, so I will start by writing it down.

A Samurai is someone who possesses both the "power to believe" and the "power to push through within their company."

"Believing" is not as easy as it sounds.

For example, if I said, "I can cross Lake Biwa with these bamboo-copter-like wings!" most people would calmly retort, "No, that's impossible."

But the Samurai were different. They seriously considered, "Oh, maybe it could fly," and even racked their brains, asking, "Well, what can we do to make it fly even better?"

If they didn't genuinely believe that "OSHIRO can fly," they wouldn't be able to push it through within their company. One investor, in a company meeting where the atmosphere was, "OSHIRO? What's that? Can it fly?" stood up alone and said this:

"This company might be flying around the world in 10 years, or even 100 years from now!"
...The meeting went silent. (Perhaps the people there were momentarily surprised.)

A Samurai refers to someone who doesn't just believe, but has the power to stick to that conviction and push it through within their company. They are not only people who believe in the potential of OSHIRO, but also people who use that "power to believe" to take action themselves, involve those around them, and possess the "power to push through within their company" to make it a reality.

The Common Ground Between "Investors" and "Producers"

Believing in potential is also the beginning of hardship. From the moment you are convinced, "This company can make it!" unexpected headwinds blow one after another.

Daisuke-san (Daisuke Shigaki), a co-founder of OSHIRO and a former music producer, knows this from personal experience.

He once fell in love with the singing voice of an artist who was still unknown and tried to sell them.
However, when he brought it to a meeting, 29 out of 30 people said "NO."

"Don't they sound like someone else?" "Will they sell?"

He was told that many times. But Daisuke-san said,

"This singing voice will change the world."

…The atmosphere in the meeting room became tense.
However, no one gave the go-ahead.

Then, he resorted to his final option.

“I understand. I will take responsibility. I will bear all the risks. So, please let this artist debut!”

The meeting room fell silent.

After that, Daisuke-san went around to persuade the relevant people in the company individually, and finally obtained the green light.

And so, the artist debuted and went on to release a string of million-selling hits, becoming a wonderful artist who left their mark on J-POP history.

The investors who believed in OSHIRO and persuaded the company are exactly the same.
The samurai pushed through proposals that would normally never pass.
If they had given up, OSHIRO would not be here today. They are truly worthy of the name samurai.

OSHIRO is kept alive by the courage and initiative of samurai.

This story is not limited to investors and producers. The exact same structure exists in the world of editors.

There are editors who find an unknown author, become convinced that “this person is interesting,” and bring their first book into the world. On the other hand, there are editors who work with authors after they have already become successful.

Both play important roles, but those who take the risk and step forward first are the ones who pave the way for the future. I was once told this by one such editor.

“I don't get fired up unless it's the author's first book.”

In other words, they are the type who gets fired up about creating the future. We are supported by such people.

They are not just supporters.

They are people who genuinely believe that “this company will create the future.”
Their conviction and resolve also support OSHIRO.

One investor said this to me.

“Sugiyama-san, please remember this. I didn't invest in the service itself. I bet on your future.”

The moment I heard those words, tears welled up in my eyes.

“There really are people who believe in us this much.”

At that moment, I made a resolution.
I will never betray this expectation.

No matter how strong the headwind blows, and no matter how much my wings may flutter, I will keep flying.