She built a career in Japan and says punctuality is non-negotiable

Lauren Rose Kocher grew up in a small Indiana town and became fascinated with Japan after seeing a Sesame Street episode about the country. She studied Japanese at the University of Chicago, spent a summer in Hokkaido, and moved to Japan in 2008 to teach English — not because she wanted to be a teacher, but because she aimed to work for a Japanese company.

Having never worked full-time in the US, her sense of corporate culture has been formed almost entirely in Japan. After teaching she moved into corporate roles: three years as an assistant and international concert promoter, four years in Sony Music's business development division, and later cofounder and COO of a VC-funded ticketing platform.

Today she is the CEO and founder of Vegas PR Group, a Tokyo-based marketing agency focused on culture, the arts, music, and fashion; the bilingual team of nine works with Japanese and international clients.

Japan, Tokyo

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