How are Swedish healthcare companies entering and operating on the Japanese market

Abstract

The Japanese healthcare market is full of hinders and barriers for foreign companies. These prevents new companies from entering the market unless they have the resources to spend on adapting to the Japanese market. Despite these hinders and barriers Japan continues to be a market which most healthcare companies wants to enter. Behind all the barrier lies one of the world’s largest healthcare markets. The purpose of this thesis is to look at how Swedish healthcare companies enter and compete by looking at two companies, AstraZeneca and Mölnlycke Health Care. The study was conducted through interviews with employees of the two companies as well as secondary data. The two companies way of entering, expanding and competing on the Japanese market would be compared to three theories, the 2017 Uppsala model, the 1977 Uppsala model and Porter’s five forces. What could be found is a large reliance on networks on the Japanese focus with a large emphasis on good relations with key opinion leaders. What was also found is that even though the barriers of entry were high, once inside the market they would instead protect the company.