Notable Moments

Since its foundation, Kyocera had a goal of becoming a world leader. The company began looking for export opportunities in 1961, and in 1962 signed an overseas sales agency agreement with Kyokuto Boeki (Far East Mercantile). On July 8 that year, Inamori went on a one-month business trip to the United States.

One of the goals of his trip was to have Kyocera products recognized and valued in the United States - a technologically-advanced country - so that they would be used by Japanese companies as well. In Japan, where a track record was emphasized particularly at the time, many major companies would not work with a startup like Kyocera. Therefore, Inamori thought that if Kyocera products were used by American companies from whom Japanese electronics manufacturers had learned their technologies, Japanese manufacturers would likely recognize, value, and adopt Kyocera products.

Inamori was filled with energy and a sense of responsibility, recalling that "They sent me on an overseas business trip despite the high cost, and a senior employee even took an overnight train to Haneda Airport to see me off. I had to meet those expectations by delivering results, whatever it took."

Every day, he took his product samples to potential clients with the Kyokuto Boeki sales manager, but it did not produce any results. It was my first trip to the United States, and at times I was left crying. What I did learn was that General Instrument and Diamondite, two companies I met with, looked at Kyocera's products and said that they would like to introduce our technology. As Kyocera staff worked hard to develop products in their own way, before they knew it they had accumulated technological capabilities similar to those in the United States, which were world leaders. This gave Inamori greater confidence and certainty that what he and his team had done so far was not wrong.

Photo: Inamori waving from the airstairs on an overseas business trip in later years