Brabant has proven itself to be a vibrant region for international investors, due to an excellent workforce and rapid developments. As it is home to the second largest concentration of Japanese businesses in the Netherlands, the province of Brabant and the Brabant Development Agency (BOM) were pleased to host a special Japan CEO Event at OMRON Manufacturing of the Netherlands on January 19th, 2017.

As a focus on strengthening ties among Japanese investors, the event created an ambience with not only room to network, but also to discover more about the OMRON factory – a prime example of an outstanding Japanese business in Brabant. The honored guests were welcomed here by Mr. Hiroyuki Usui, CEO of OMRON Europe, and Mr. Bert Pauli, Deputy Governor of Brabant. After the impressive company tour at OMRON, King’s Commissioner Mr. Wim van de Donk hosted the dinner at the Maurick Castle in Vught and His Excellency Mr. Inomata, Ambassador for the State of Japan, was one of the esteemed guests who shared a few words with the attendees.

The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, as 45 guests from companies such as Ricoh, Shimano, MOL Logistics, Takemoto and Daikin Chemical joined the event. A visit by Rick van den Hurk, one of the best baseball players in the Nippon Professional Baseball league in Japan, ensured no one left empty handed; every guest received a signed baseball from the Dutch star player.

“We’re thrilled with the success of the event, but even more with the enthusiastic response of our guests,” senior project manager Edwin Zonder (BOM) says, who manages daily communications with close to 70 Japanese businesses in the Brabant region. “We’re delighted to see how close the Japanese community in Brabant is becoming, and we want to support this as much as possible. It stimulates Japanese companies to come to Brabant and ensures that communication about projects gets better each and every day. It’s an honor that we were able to host such a special, local event – and we’re looking forward to learning more from each other as we all grow.”

More photo’s are available here.