Artisan Honey is an Estonian company primarily focusing on the domestic market, offering gourmet products and business gifts. However, the company also has significant experience in international markets, including successful expansion into Japan. Artisan Honey’s founder, Sander Sulane, shares their expertise.

According to Sulane, entering the Japanese market took time and required persistence, but continuous effort and good partners have helped them succeed. He notes that the high demands of Japanese consumers and cultural differences have posed challenges and valuable lessons. In the future, Artisan Honey plans to continue expanding in Japan and is also considering entering the South Korean and Singaporean markets.

Here’s an interview with Sander Sulane.

Which markets is Artisan Honey currently operating in?

Artisan Honey mainly operates in the domestic market today. In local retail, we focus on gourmet and holiday product assortments. The most important part of our domestic activity involves B2B gift projects—personalised business gifts and Christmas gifts for companies’ employees, clients, and partners.

Estonian honey is a valued souvenir we’ve considered when developing our packaging. Artisan Honey and gifts are becoming synonymous, always offering a solution.

Among foreign markets, our primary focus is Japan, though we are also present in Singapore, Finland, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany.

“In Japan, approximately 47,000 tons of honey are sold annually, of which a staggering 45,000 tons are imported. 71% of the imported honey comes from China. Honey fraud is becoming an increasing problem, with counterfeit and imported honey sold as genuine and domestic. The introduction of DNA-tested honey would heighten consumer doubts about untested honey, creating opportunities for more high-quality honey to enter the market.”
Tsubasa Yoshito, Japan Market Project Manager at Enterprise Estonia

What was decisive in entering the Japanese market?

In our case, entering the market was quite a long process, so the most decisive factor has been patience. When we turned our attention to Japan 10 years ago, it seemed like an exotic target market with high purchasing power. Moreover, the initial feedback from meetings with the Japanese was always very encouraging. At the time, there was also a story circulating about the success of Joik’s natural cosmetics products in Japan, which helped us make our decision.

What were your first experiences with the peculiarities of the Japanese market? Do you remember any particular stories related to this?

It took us several years to realise that the Japanese never say “no.” All meetings with potential partners and clients were always amicable, motivating us to invest energy into the Japanese market. However, we did manage to establish some collaborations quietly and gathered references.

In the first five years, we sold a little over 800 kilograms of honey in Japan through various trial batches, which, of course, was a rather unmotivating volume for us to continue investing time and money into the Japanese market. Thanks to good contacts, we signed a cooperation agreement with a promising importer in Tokyo.

This was our real breakthrough moment, as they were a wealthy company, immediately willing to invest significantly in representing our products: flights for the entire team to Estonia, Japanese-language marketing materials, a website, participation in trade fairs, and so on.

But then, one day, while I was on yet another flight to Japan, I received a message from our importer’s contact person saying that their boss and the company owner had been arrested in the Artisan Honey booth a day before the fair started while preparing for the event! It seemed like an unreal turn of events.

When I landed in Tokyo and turned on the TV in the hotel, I saw the unbelievable news—the familiar face had indeed been arrested, and the company’s website appeared on the screen, along with pictures of our products. It later turned out that the detained individual was involved in a large-scale tax fraud case, the company was liquidated, and the CEO was sent to prison. So, our high hopes for a strong partnership with a powerful new partner quickly collapsed, and we were essentially back at square one.

Thanks to Estonians living in Tokyo, we managed to take over and staff the trade fair booth, which had already been paid for by the local partner, and we tried to find new potential partners at the fair. We also went to the Estonian embassy to share our bad luck, where the then-counsellor, Mr Argo Kangro, listened to us and, a few weeks later, connected us with a new potential importer. We seized the opportunity, thinking it was now or never. It worked well—we clicked with the new partner immediately, and the collaboration went smoothly. Our five-year struggle to break into the Japanese market was seen as a sign of determination, which was highly valued.

We sold about 20,000 kg of honey in Japan in the next five years.

“I received a message from our importer’s contact person saying that their boss and the company owner had been arrested in the Artisan Honey booth a day before the fair started while preparing for the event! It seemed like an unreal turn of events.”
Sander Sulane, Artisan Honey’s founder

What is your long-term plan for the Japanese market? What are the next steps or near-term goals you hope to achieve?

Our long-term plan is to be steadily present in Japan and grow step by step. We recently shipped to a new client, a central warehouse that supplies over 4,000 stores. Unfortunately, the Japanese yen has been weak for some time now, and importing has become very expensive for the Japanese, slowing down business growth.

Who are your partners and distributors in Japan (large stores, restaurants)? Who else do you hope to partner with?

Today, our main sales channel in Japan is e-commerce. On Rakuten, our product is one of the highest-priced in the honey category and has been the #1 bestseller several times.

In addition, we have a small partnership with a few bakeries, cafés, and smaller store chains. We have participated in the Foodex fair five times, and every year, we manage to grow our customer base a little more.

What market share are you aiming for in Japan?

Estonia will probably never produce enough honey to capture a significant market share in Japan, so we think more in reverse. We’d be pretty satisfied if we exported 20% of Estonian honey to Japan. Currently, the annual volume is within a few percentage points.

What external support did you receive when entering the Japanese market?

We have received versatile support from EIS (Enterprise Estonia) regarding the Japanese market, which has helped us stay focused and move forward. We have participated in several target market seminars and high-level visits, received advice from target market consultants, and participated in several on-site joint stands.

“If a company is well-prepared, makes the necessary investments, and offers unique products, entering the Far East markets is possible. In the case of Artisan Honey, I admire that they participated in the EU-Japan Centre’s “Get Ready for Japan” program, which was a significant investment in time and money. Had they waited for Japanese partners to come to Estonia on their own, this success would never have happened.”
Tsubasa Yoshito, Japan Market Project Manager at Enterprise Estonia (EIS)

What are the following markets you’re targeting? And why these?

Currently, we have South Korea and Singapore in mind, as their consumers are also demanding. Since our product has proven itself well in Japan, this could help open some doors more easily.

What advice would you give to other entrepreneurs considering entering the Japanese market?

I recommend familiarising yourself with all the peculiarities of the Japanese market. The EU-Japan Centre website offers excellent materials for this.

We had already spent five years navigating Japan with our knowledge and naivety before we were able to participate in the EU-Japan Centre’s two-week intensive training program, “Get Ready For Japan.” This course provided a wealth of knowledge and networking opportunities, and I recommend it to anyone who takes the Japanese market seriously.

Finally, let’s discuss the issue of counterfeit honey, which has been a topic of discussion lately. For example, there was recent news that the honey producer Nordmel sent the world’s first DNA-tested honey to Japan, proving its authenticity. How do you see this issue?

The problem is vast, without a doubt. Honey is one of the most frequently counterfeited food products in the world, and recent DNA tests on products in the German market showed that over 80% of the items failed.

We are also raising awareness that counterfeit honey is a big problem in the market, and honest beekeepers will disappear if the large market isn’t regulated. They are already disappearing—for example, in Germany, most large beekeeping operations have either closed down or reduced production to a minimum.

With all the contacts we’ve made over the years through trade fairs, we are now reaching out one by one, explaining that, unfortunately, most of the honey on your shelves is cheap counterfeit, as was proven in Germany. The counterfeit honey market is a huge issue that requires swift and effective resolution.

Are you interested in trading with Estonia? Trade with Estonia is providing sourcing services for foreign enterprises. Contact Estonian export advisors or use our free e-consulting service to start trade with Estonia.