FourKites and strategic investor Mitsui & Co., Ltd. recently selected Mitsui Knowledge Industry Co., LTD. to exclusively resell FourKites’ slate of real-time supply chain visibility solutions in Japan to fulfill the demand of the platform in the region, according to a press release.
“We are thrilled to be appointed FourKites’ exclusive reseller in Japan,” Sho Nagamatsu, executive general manager, DX Sales Unit 2, MKI, said. “FourKites appreciates Japan’s unique requirements and the imperative to meet customers’ exacting standards for best-in-class technologies, service and support. We look forward to meeting and beating those expectations as we help our Japanese customers build more resilient and agile supply chains with the industry’s leading real-time visibility platform.”
Specializing in Japan-based transformational IT projects, MKI will oversee FourKites’ go-to-market activities, including carrier and customer engagements.
In correlation with the appointment, FourKites has carried out the launch of a localized Japanese platform. The new source is designed under MKI’s guidance “to ensure flawless translation and optimal user experience features — and for the first time is offering over-the-road (OTR) tracking for domestic shipments in Japan to complement its existing international tracking solutions,” a recent press release stated.
The appointment forms part of Mitsui & Co., Ltd.’s $10 million investment in the company, which prioritizes the development of hyper-localized solutions for sales, customer service and operations across the APAC market.
“Japan is one of the world’s leading supply chain and logistics hubs, and MKI is an ideal partner to help ensure we deliver against this market’s unique needs and high expectations,” FourKites founder and CEO Mathew Elenjickal said. “We look forward to working exclusively with MKI in Japan, and to introducing greater capabilities across the APAC region through our partnership with Mitsui.”
FourKites' catalog of APAC customers includes Nestlé Japan, Chevron Corporation, Kraft Heinz, SpaceX, Molson Coors, Bacardi and QVC. The news is confirmed as the company experiences an acceleration in demand across the APAC region. The company reported a 91% growth in new customers in the region, and surpassed 240% of growth in shipments tracked in 46 APAC countries.
Other goals tracked by the company in 2022 include “146% growth in the number of carriers tracking loads, 1.8 billion+ miles tracked, 30% growth in the number of regional ports tracked, now totaling 282 ports, 486% growth in the number of facilities tracked, now totaling 14,000 facilities,” and Live OTR tracking launches in Australia, New Zealand, India, Thailand, Taiwan, Philippines, Singapore and Malaysia. Additional launches in the region are also being considered.