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Member Profiles
Chairman and representative director of Yamasa Corporation
Michio Hamaguchi
Michio Hamaguchi is the 12th head of Yamasa Corporation. The founder of Yamasa crossed the sea to Choshi from Hiro Village in Kishu Arida District to found the business in 1645. The business has been run in Choshi for 374 years, but the family has lived in Hiro, and the heads of the company were born and raised in Kishu from the 1st through the 11th generation. However, I grew up in Tokyo. After graduating from the Faculty of Business and Commerce at Keio University, I studied in the U.S. and then worked at a life insurance company before joining Yamasa in 1968. I became president and representative director in 1983 and chairman and representative director, my current position, in 2017.
People talk about how our consumer society has become more advanced, and about the trend from products to experiences. If people visit the area for sightseeing purposes, , then the number of people seeking experiences will grow.
Lots of foreign tourists stay in Shukubo lodgings at Koyasan and despite the cold weather get up to attend early-morning religious services. Foreign tourists' interest is not based solely on curiosity. I'm driven by the need to understand what draws so many foreigners to Koyasan.
My roots stretch back to a temple called Anraku-ji, which still stands in Hirogawa Town. Its founder trained at Koyasan before coming down to what was then Hiro Village in Arida District to establish the temple. With this not insubstantial connection to Koyasan, I joined this group, and now I feel an even stronger connection.
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