After a return to the hotel for a welcome rest, the final Friday Tokyo business visit was a late morning appointment with executives of American Express.

Arranged through the professional assistance of Ayako Ikehara, we were treated to an executive level presentation of the AMEX business strategy in the Japan market by Gregory Stoops, Marketing Manager for International Consumer and Small Business Services. Greg was supported by a team of three colleagues from his marketing team.

Greg offered a detailed and insightful review of the Japanese consumer and specifically focused on the attitude and behavior relative to the credit card and financial services industry, presenting significant data and studies to support the marketing approaches American Express has deployed to be successful in a very competitive market. Of particular interest were the number of adaptations required to address the needs, wants and demands of the Japanese market. His comments also highlighted the generational issues, challenges and opportunities with Japan’s aging population and changing behaviors.

As a marketing professor, I was thrilled with the depth and scope of the presentations and the student’s questions and response. Wow!

A special feature of the presentation was a view of the future that tied together with yesterday’s DoCoMo visit. The marketing future is the mobile experience! In fact, Greg indicated that they take their visiting New York headquarters executives on the very same tour our students experienced.