Japanese Occupation 2.0 - Avis employé Sales Exexutive Nippon Shokken

Hello there. I am sure you've recently heard of this company, Nihon Shokken, located at 5 Harper Road, Singapore. Right next to Tai Seng MRT. That's why you came to this Glassdoor page, right? You must have seen them at your school's career fair recently. Or seen a job vacancy for a "Sales and Marketing Executive", for a Japanese seasonings company. And you must have wanted to know what the reality of the job is. I will be honest. Even remembering my past work experience is highly unpleasant; and I myself don't particularly enjoy penning negative content. But if it helps future applicants comprehend the true nature of the role, or the true nature of this company, and avoid being trapped there, then it will be of some use. This review is a warning. The lies start from the title. PLEASE UNDERSTAND; THE JOB IS NOT AS ADVERTISED. There is no marketing. You don't touch social media, you don't organise events (those are left to senior staff). As a sales executive, you operate on a no-commission basis; your daily job scope is to: 1) Visit your customers often, some of which are located in places like Jurong or Tuas, or Senoko even. If you stay in the office, the boss will watch you and deem you lazy. 2) Cook often, and in large batches (You will have to cook from scratch. cutting meat, vegetables, deep frying. and you have to clean up after. You don't like it? Don't want to smell like oil? Don't want to face the heat? TOO BAD. You are required to.) 3) Pack what you have cooked and bring it with you, along with many samples + catalogue bag to visit customers. Expect to carry at least 1-2KG worth of items with you. 4) Cold visit at least 4 or 5 eateries to push your sauces and samples, which your colleagues will likely have visited before because of the scale of this country, then you go away empty-handed (BTW, if you don't visit at least that much, you will be called in for a meeting and told that "you are not doing enough") There will also be a routine target meeting at the end of the month, and a sales meeting (for the whole office) at the start of the month. So, it is FROWNED UPON to book your leave during that date. You will be singled out and told off if you try to book your leave then. Do you speak Japanese? No? Because you're Singaporean, right? And you haven't learned any? The daily routine is like this: You NEED to enter the office AT LEAST 5 minutes earlier than the official start time of 8.30am (No, you are not allowed to arrive on the dot. If you do, you will be pulled into the meeting room to be "reminded that you are to be punctual and show up early as this is a Japanese company") If you're late after a few strikes, they will tart to deduct from your leave/daily pay. Don't say I didn't warn you. Call out "Ohayou gozaimasu" to everyone (This is compulsory) Start your office cleaning duties when the office radio starts playing music. (Duties change every month. It can range from vacuuming, to washing the sink, to mopping the floor. This is compulsory; there is no cleaning auntie) When the bell rings, the morning assembly will start. You need to stand and listen to what the boss has to say and colleagues take turns reading out loud from an office handbook. You need to bow when the bell rings again. You have to do this everyday ok. 5) Your section manager will then start another small meeting, mostly asking you what you plan to do today. You need to give a good answer if not you will be challenged and questioned. Don't forget, if your answer is not satisfactory, they will face the wrath of the branch manager. That is why they will put pressure on you as well, to avoid being scolded) 6) You need to start preparing to go out or start cooking for the customers (You cannot stay in the office. It is a sign of laziness. You will also be watched by the branch manager the whole day) 7) When you go out, you need to say "Ittekimasu" 8) When someone goes out, you need to say "Itterasshai" 9) When you come back to the office, you need to say, "Tadaima, kaerimashita" 10) When you leave the office for the day, you need to say "Otsukaresamadesu" 11) You have to submit a daily report at the end of EVERY SINGLE DAY, detailing which customers you visited and what they said. It goes without saying that you need to have a long report, otherwise you will be pulled into the meeting room and... 🙄 12) At the end of every week, you also have to think up of the schedule for the next week. You better do it or you will be called lazy. You also need to put enough things inside or else, you get called into the VIP room again.... Company culture: Most colleagues are nice. But even within a small group of people, there will still be individuals who are: Highly competitive and will seek to advance at any cost They also take part in workplace bullying, by constantly talking ill about other colleagues behind their backs, with personal unfounded slander, instead of giving direct constructive criticism, hoping to garner hate against them. They are also highly critical of others. They will be happy visiting your end-users, but become alarmed when you visit theirs, and will come to your desk/message you straightaway to inform you "this is my customer. You don't need to visit." Double standards. They are also high-functioning, and good at brownnosing, but this comes at a cost to their personal character. In other words, workplace bullying (which can be reported to MOM). There will also be another individual that is not so much an aggressor but has displayed incapability to lead and has shown instances of poor character (constantly passing off work to other colleagues). They also keep wasting the days that they are assigned cars because they are simply too timid to drive without scratching the car. Their paranoia is grating and a burden to others. Of course, the well-adjusted colleagues will revive your faith in humanity Leave: As mentioned, it is frowned upon to take leave on the first and last days of the month Yes, you have to answer your company phone to take orders EVEN WHILE ON LEAVE, before 12pm everyday. Promotion: Promotion is HEAVILY FAVOURITISM-BASED. If you are good at wayang, and putting in unnecessary effort and good at announcing your latest kitchen/office clean up in the WhatsApp group, you can get promoted twice within two years, congrats 🤪 However, colleagues who have stayed for three/four years have not even seen a promotion once. Maybe a yearly increment will make up for it??? You tell me, curious jobseeker🤪 Management: Some of the most egoistic, mentally-ill, anti-social individuals I have ever met. Frankly speaking, they should NEVER have been allowed out of Japan, because they show you the WORST sides of Japanese people/culture, and spoil the image of their people just by existing and breathing. The management staff are there because they're good at brownnosing, not neccessarily out of competence. They demands what little control/respect they can get by nagging incessantly. They will message you at night, past work hours, and then message you late at night again telling you to "answer his message" and "not ignore him". They will tell you that you need to "follow Japanese work culture" (Hello. It's Singapore, 2026? You think this is Syonan-to?) and they will pick at you in various ways to maintain their "control". But in reality, they depend on his subordinates a lot to finish up their work for them, and they are very forgetful and inflexible. They are also racist, have expressed opinions of other cultures and races being unlikeable and inferior, think Japan is the greatest country on earth, and only trust their fellow Japanese people, and wants the local staff to adapt to the culture, instead of adapting to local Singaporean culture. I will say that their saving grace is that they occasionally are in a good mood. God help you if they aren't. Another individual of management is two-faced. They are only looking out for their own interests. They like to pick at other colleagues for trivial matters in front of everybody and send out droning, nagging messages on the WhatsApp work chat about everyone's failings, and how they can do better. Why? Because it's to SHOW the boss that is "managing" everyone and "doing his job". This is particularly ironic because after nagging at everyone, he goes out of the office on the pretext of going to see a customer, when everyone knows that he hides in the stairwell to play Pokemon Go and smoke for 40 minutes before actually heading off. However, if you are from CIA (the Culinary Institute), they will love you and want to hire you! Isn't that great? Awesome! Amazing! Wow! Be prepared to cook non-stop! If you have read all the way up till here, you will know that the amount of effort taken to write so much, and in such detail about this odious place, can attest to the reality of this workplace. I have no reason to lie about what I have experienced, especially being anonymous. What benefit do I gain? (Okay, I'd be glad if I can warn people away from joining a bad place) Are you willing to waste a few months to a year, of your time here? If you're really desperate for work and think you can handle it after being informed of the above, go ahead. Otherwise, don't. It's not worth the day-in, day-out monotone of wayang and doing unfulfilling, braindead work. Take care, and hope you find a better/comparable offer soon! (Really. It's not worth it in Nippon Shokken).