Thinking about "We Co-Build Community" with Manabe-san

Monosus's tagline, "We Co-Build," is followed by eight words: Relationship, Team, Community, Narrative, Brand, Eco System, Business, Today and Tomorrow. In the fourth installment of this series in which the CEO himself speaks about "We Co-Build," we interviewed him on the theme of "We Co-Build Community."

Sugimoto: It's interesting that among the eight words that follow "We Co-Build," there are two words that refer to groups of people: "Team" and "Community." Under "Community," it says "a place where experts from different fields co-create."

Manabe: "Team" refers to a group of members within the company, but "Community" includes various people outside the company.

Sugimoto: Somehow, I think that Ms. Manabe has her own style, for example, Vice President Nagai has his own style, and Arai from the Corporate Cafeteria Research Institute has his own style, and that Monosus as a whole is "co-building." This time, it's an interview for the "Thinking with Manabe" series, so I'd like to hear about how Ms. Manabe builds communities.

Manabe: When I work, I try to make the relationship between client and contractor feel as fluid as possible. You could also say I try to blur the boundaries. The moment it becomes "I'm the client," "I'm the contractor," "I'll buy your skills for this price," I become the "evaluator," don't I? Of course, money is exchanged, but I don't think you can "create together" if it's just a simple client-contractor relationship.

It's one way to create something great by blurring the lines between ordering and receiving, while exchanging ideas as professionals. The same applies when we're the ones receiving the orders. If we just act on orders based on a typical ordering-and-receiving relationship, I don't think we'll end up with anything good. Even when we receive orders from large companies, we do it that way, which I think causes quite a bit of confusion around us.

Sugimoto: Ms. Manabe, you seem to have many long-lasting relationships that started through work. For example, you've known the Japanese and American chefs you worked with at Nomadic Kitchen for 15 years now.

Manabe: About a year and a half ago, I took over the business from Yuri Nomura of eatrip, and since 2019, I've been running the Tokyo restaurant "The Blind Donkey" with Jerome Waag, who was the head chef of the California restaurant "Chez Panisse," and he also supervised the diner "Kamaya" for the Kamiyama Food Hub Project. It's like we've built our current business relationships over more than 10 years, or rather, we've grown together into them.

However, in order to create such a community, I need a business foundation as a means for us to achieve something together. I feel that I am involved with society and people through business, so it is important for me to deliver that value by receiving money.

Sugimoto: I see. This story seems to be related to "We Co-Build Business," so let's continue this next time.

This is a personal story, but the first time I received work from Ms. Manabe was in the fall of 2018. It was to cover an event for the Food Hub Project in Yosano Town, Kyoto. I wondered, "Was she asking me because I live in Kyoto?" But the next job I received from her was to interview an artist in Kochi. I felt that Ms. Manabe was reaching out to me for "something" beyond cost or skills.

Back then, I strongly believed that as a professional writer, I had to be chosen based on my skills and experience. I might have thought somewhere in my heart that being chosen based on personal relationships was second-rate! But now, I feel a good kind of tension when working with Ms. Manabe. It may sound presumptuous, but it's a professional feeling. And, this is something I'm most grateful for, working with Ms. Manabe was also a part of a process that helped me shed the mindset of "I have to increase my market value and stabilize my income."

I'm sure that those who have worked with Ms. Manabe will read this while recalling various scenes. I would be very happy if this article could raise the temperature of the community that surrounds you all a little.