# Market Access Workshops for Japan: How EU SMEs Join > The EU-Japan Centre's Market Access Workshops give European SMEs free, expert-led preparation for the Japanese market, sectoral and cultural. How they work, what they cost (nothing), and how to get one hosted in your region. - **Source:** https://www.silkdrive.com/insights/market-access-workshops-japan - **Author:** Patric Sawada - **Published:** 2026-06-01 - **Category:** Cross-Cultural Training - **Topics:** market access workshop japan, eu-japan centre market access workshops, japanese business culture workshop, japan market entry, eu sme japan, enterprise europe network ## Summary - Market Access Workshops are free, expert-led sessions from the EU-Japan Centre that prepare European SMEs for the Japanese market - They are co-organised with local EU partners, Enterprise Europe Network members, clusters, chambers, and regional development agencies, so they are usually delivered in your own region or language context - Format is 1-2 hours online or 3-4 hours on-site; content splits between sectoral market access (regulation, requirements, strategy) and Japanese business culture (protocol, meetings, decision-making) - They are free to participants: the Centre covers the expert fee and any travel. The programme has run regularly since 2015 - Silkdrive founder Patric Sawada has delivered these workshops to Polish, Czech, and Swedish SME cohorts; if your region has an EEN partner, you can ask them to host one If your company is weighing up Japan, there is a free, expert-led way to get your team prepared, sectorally and culturally, without paying a consultancy. The [EU-Japan Centre's](https://www.eu-japan.eu/) **Market Access Workshops** have done exactly this for European SMEs since 2015, and most companies have never heard of them. This guide explains how they work and how to get one. It is written by [Silkdrive](/) founder Patric Sawada, who has delivered these workshops as an EU-Japan Centre expert, so it covers the model from the delivery side as well as the participant side. ## What they are A [Market Access Workshop](https://www.eu-japan.eu/market-access-workshops) is a session that prepares European SMEs for the Japanese market. Each one covers one or both of: - **Sectoral market access**, the requirements, regulations, and entry strategies for a specific industry in Japan. - **[Japanese business culture](/insights/japanese-business-culture)**, how to meet Japanese partners, business protocol, and how decisions actually get made. The defining feature is the delivery model: the Centre **co-organises** each workshop with a **local EU partner**, an Enterprise Europe Network member, cluster, chamber of commerce, or regional development agency. The local partner hosts and gathers the audience; the Centre supplies the external expert and pays the costs. That is why these workshops tend to land in your own region and language context rather than as a generic global webcast. ## Format and cost | | Online | On-site | |---|---|---| | Duration | ~1-2 hours | ~3-4 hours | | Location | Anywhere | Premises of a local EEN partner / EU entity | | Cost to you | Free | Free | **Participants pay nothing.** The Centre covers the expert's fee and any travel and accommodation. This is funded work, not lead-gen, which is why the content can stay genuinely useful rather than turning into a sales pitch. ## What a cultural workshop actually delivers ![A trade expert explaining Japanese business meeting protocol to European SME attendees in a market access workshop](/images/insights/market-access-workshops-japan-inline.webp) The business-culture sessions exist to stop the expensive, avoidable mistakes. European teams routinely misread Japanese meetings: they treat silence as disagreement, over-prepare etiquette while under-preparing the [decision process](/insights/nemawashi-japanese-decision-making), and set Q1 commercial targets on a market that calibrates partners over years. A good workshop resets those expectations before they cost a relationship. In the cohorts I have delivered to, the most common reaction is "I have been measuring the wrong things," rarely "I learned new etiquette." For the underlying mechanics, our guides on [nemawashi](/insights/nemawashi-japanese-decision-making), the [ringi approval process](/insights/ringi-japanese-approval-process), and [honne and tatemae](/insights/honne-tatemae-japanese-communication) go deeper than any single session can. ## How to get a workshop in your region 1. Identify your nearest **Enterprise Europe Network** partner, cluster, chamber, or regional development agency. 2. Ask them whether they can **co-host a Market Access Workshop** with the EU-Japan Centre. They can respond to the Centre's periodic calls for expressions of interest among EEN partners. 3. If you just want to attend, watch the [Centre's events page](https://www.eu-japan.eu/market-access-workshops) for upcoming workshops you can register for. ## When you need the private version instead A Market Access Workshop is a cohort session: broad enough to serve a mixed audience. If your situation is specific, a live deal, a particular Japanese counterpart, a regulated sector, you may want a session built only around your company. That is what Silkdrive's [Japan Market Entry Webinar](/training/japan-market-entry) and [Japanese business culture training](/training/japan-business-culture) provide: the same practitioner, delivered privately to your team. But if you are at the orientation stage, start with the free Centre workshop. It is the right first step, and we will tell you so. ## Frequently asked questions ### What is a Market Access Workshop? A Market Access Workshop is a free, expert-led session organised by the EU-Japan Centre to help European SMEs access the Japanese market. Each workshop covers either a specific industrial sector (requirements, regulations, market-entry strategy) or Japanese business culture (meeting partners, protocol, decision-making), and often both. They are co-organised with local EU support organisations and run online or on-site. ### How much does a Market Access Workshop cost? Nothing for participants. The EU-Japan Centre covers the expert's presentation fee and any travel and accommodation. The workshops are funded through the Centre's European Commission and METI backing, so attending SMEs pay no fee. ### Who organises Market Access Workshops? The EU-Japan Centre co-organises them only in cooperation with local EU support organisations: Enterprise Europe Network members, or other EU non-profit entities such as clusters, chambers of commerce, and regional development agencies. The local partner hosts and recruits the audience; the Centre supplies the external expert and covers the costs. ### How long is a Market Access Workshop? Online workshops run roughly 1 to 2 hours. On-site workshops at the premises of a local Enterprise Europe Network partner or other EU entity run roughly 3 to 4 hours, allowing more depth and interaction. ### How can my company or region get a Market Access Workshop? Workshops are arranged through local EU partners. If your region has an Enterprise Europe Network member, cluster, chamber of commerce, or regional development agency, ask them whether they can co-host a Market Access Workshop with the EU-Japan Centre. The Centre periodically calls for expressions of interest among EEN partners; your local organisation can respond to those. ### What is covered in the business culture version? The cultural workshops cover how to meet and work with Japanese partners: business protocol, how meetings function, the role of relationship-building, and how decisions are actually made through processes like nemawashi and ringi. The aim is to prevent the common European mistakes, misreading silence, over-indexing on etiquette, expecting fast commercial outcomes, before they cost you a partnership.