Youth Entrepreneur Initiatives × Vancouver Startup Visits
The Japan-Canada Chamber of Commerce (JCCOC) collaborated on the "Youth Entrepreneur Initiatives" program, which ran from July 30 to August 11, 2026, creating opportunities to connect the next generation of entrepreneurs, primarily junior and senior high school students from Japan, with startup companies in Vancouver.
This initiative aligns with the Japan-Canada Chamber of Commerce's policy of **connecting young entrepreneurs and startups in Japan and Canada who are challenging new business opportunities from a global perspective**.
■ What is the Youth Entrepreneur Initiative?
This program brought together 24 participants from all over Japan and Toronto, Canada, for 14 days of practical entrepreneurship education from July 29 to August 11.
The program emphasized hands-on learning, including training in English-language entrepreneurial pitches, exploring marketing ideas for launching Japanese products in the Canadian market, visits to big tech companies in Seattle, USA, startups in Vancouver, and a visit to SFU's venture lab.
The Japan-Canada Chamber of Commerce was responsible for coordinating and accompanying participants on visits and networking opportunities with Vancouver-based startup companies as part of this program.
The company we visited this time is based in North Vancouver. Coconama Chocolate And a Vancouver-based circular economy company ChopValue These are the two companies.
■ Visit to Coconama Chocolate
"Why did you start your business in Vancouver instead of Japan?"
On July 30th, participants visited Coconama Chocolate in North Vancouver.
Coconama Chocolate is a raw chocolate workshop run by a Japanese couple, offering unique products that are colored with natural ingredients and are gluten-free and nut-free. They also offer workshops where you can experience making chocolate from roasting and grinding the cocoa beans.
During this visit, we spoke with the founder about his journey from graduating from graduate school to gaining experience in the research and development department of a major confectionery company, and then deciding to become independent because he wanted to work closer to the customers.
What particularly attracted the students' attention was,"Why did you start your business in Vancouver instead of Japan?"That's the theme.
The founders' efforts to develop new products and services in a market environment different from Japan, and to cultivate a unique Canadian market, served as an opportunity for students about to enter society to consider entrepreneurship as something more accessible.
Furthermore, we learned how they approach product development and branding in response to market changes such as rising cocoa bean prices, making it more than just a "company tour"—it was an opportunity to think about actual business practices.
■ Visit ChopValue
The familiar "disposable chopsticks" become a globally expanding business.
On August 6th, I visited the headquarters of ChopValue, a startup company based in Vancouver.
ChopValue is a company that develops and manufactures upcycled products using recycled wood from used chopsticks and other materials. Based in Vancouver, the company distributes its own branded products to North America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and other parts of the world, aiming to realize a circular economy.
During the visit, we received an overview of the company, toured the manufacturing lab, and then held a question-and-answer session and exchange of opinions.
What was particularly impressive to the students was,The disposable chopsticks, a material very familiar to Japanese people, have been reborn as a product with new value and are being expanded from Vancouver to the global market.That's it.
"New businesses can be born by re-examining familiar things from a different perspective."。
ChopValue's business model effectively communicates to students not only sustainability and environmental issues, but also the crucial entrepreneurial perspectives of "problem identification," "value creation," and "global expansion."
During the Q&A session, each student actively asked questions, and the members of ChopValue provided thoughtful answers.
■ Don't just "see," think about "what you would do."
There is a common theme behind these visits to the two companies.
That is, "business opportunities that arise precisely because the environment is different from Japan."
At Coconama Chocolate, I learned about entrepreneurs who are leveraging their experience gained in Japan to take on new challenges in the Vancouver market.
At ChopValue, I witnessed firsthand how they gave new value to disposable chopsticks, a material familiar to Japanese people, turned their efforts to address environmental issues into a viable business, and expanded into the global market.
Through these on-the-ground experiences, students realize that "entrepreneurship is not something only special people can do."A challenge to create new value from familiar problems and ideas, and deliver it to the world.This was an opportunity for me to truly realize that.
This visit was of great significance in achieving the program's objective of providing participants with hands-on experience in entrepreneurship, innovation, and global business.
■ Connecting the "next generation" of Japan and Canada
The Japan-Canada Chamber of Commerce's initiative to support entrepreneurs and startups began with a project in September 2023 in which entrepreneurs from the Kansai region visited Vancouver.
Since then, the organization has expanded its activities to include co-sponsoring seminars led by Professor Hasegawa of Waseda University's entrepreneurship department, collaborating with the startup divisions of its sister cities Yokohama and Chiba, and partnering with the Arizona Chamber of Commerce in the United States.
Our collaboration with the Youth Entrepreneur Initiatives is part of that initiative.
The Japan-Canada Chamber of Commerce does more than just introduce companies and people from Japan to Canada;To provide young Japanese people with opportunities to experience Canada's open entrepreneurial environment and startup ecosystem, leading to future business and innovation.We consider this to be one of our important roles.
We hope that the insights and questions that arose from this visit will lead to future challenges for the participating students.
And the Japan-Canada Chamber of Commerce will continue to...A bridge connecting the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovation talent in Japan and Canada.We will work towards creating two-way exchanges and business opportunities.
To everyone who cooperated with us
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Coconama Chocolate and ChopValue for providing me with this valuable learning opportunity.
For the next generation of entrepreneurs, the experience of actually meeting entrepreneurs, seeing things firsthand, and asking questions directly was an invaluable learning experience.
The Japan-Canada Chamber of Commerce will continue to actively support opportunities for exchange between young generations in Japan and Canada to learn about each other's potential and create new value together.
