Hiroshi Mikitani
Born 1965 · Age 60
Japanese billionaire entrepreneur, founder & CEO of Rakuten, president of Crimson Group, sports team owner and writer. Key roles include chairman of Vissel Kobe and Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Representative Director of JANE, and board member of Lyft.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan
Hiroshi Mikitani born in Kobe to Ryōichi and Setsuko Mikitani.
Family moves to the United States (New Haven, Connecticut)
Father Ryōichi Mikitani taught at Yale; family lived in New Haven from 1972–1974; young Hiroshi learned English.
Graduated Hitotsubashi University (Commerce)
Completed a bachelor's degree in commerce at Hitotsubashi University.
Joined Industrial Bank of Japan (IBJ)
Began career in banking at Industrial Bank of Japan (later part of Mizuho).
Attended Harvard Business School (MBA)
Took a break from IBJ to attend Harvard Business School (MBA program).
Graduated Harvard Business School (MBA)
Completed MBA at Harvard Business School (class of 1993).
Married Haruko Mikitani
Mikitani married Haruko (a former IBJ colleague). They later had two children.
Great Hanshin (Kobe) earthquake — life-changing event
1995 Kobe earthquake devastated his hometown; he cites this as catalyst to leave banking and revitalize Japan's economy.
Acquired Vissel Kobe football club (via Crimson Group)
Asked to take over the struggling Vissel Kobe club after the Kobe earthquake; purchased the team through his Crimson Group.
Left IBJ and started Crimson Group (consulting)
Resigned from Industrial Bank of Japan and launched his consulting/holding company, Crimson Group.
Began exploring online shopping business
Started researching high-technology and e-commerce business models as precursor to Rakuten.
Founded MDM, Inc. (Rakuten predecessor)
Co-founded MDM, Inc. with three partners and initial capital of US$250,000 to start an online marketplace.
Launched Rakuten Ichiba (online marketplace)
Official launch of Rakuten Ichiba in Japan; company started with 13 shops and 6 employees.
Company renamed Rakuten, Inc.
MDM/Rakuten Ichiba officially renamed Rakuten, Inc.
Rakuten IPO on JASDAQ
Rakuten went public on the JASDAQ; early public-market milestone during the dot-com era.
Evolved Rakuten business model from marketplace to ecosystem
Began diversifying Rakuten into travel, fintech and other services to create a multi-service ecosystem.
Acquired online brokerage (ELJ Securities) to enter finance
Rakuten moved into finance by acquiring an online brokerage; basis for future Rakuten Bank/Card operations.
Approached to create Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
Pacific League asked Mikitani to form a new baseball expansion team in Sendai; he helped establish Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles.
Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles inaugural season
Golden Eagles began play in Sendai after stadium renovation and rebuilding efforts led by Mikitani.
Published Principles for Success
Released book 'Principles for Success' (English translation/title used in sources).
Published 92 Golden Rules of Success
Authored the book '92 Golden Rules of Success' (listed in bibliographies/sources).
Acquired consumer finance company; moved into credit card business
Purchased a consumer finance firm and converted it toward credit-card operations (2008/2009 period).
Rakuten invests in international digital properties (Kobo, Ebates, Viber)
Rakuten built out global portfolio including Kobo (ebooks), Ebates (cashback) and Viber (messaging) over early 2010s.
Major overseas acquisitions begin (Buy.com, PriceMinister, Kobo, others)
From 2010 Rakuten accelerated overseas expansion with acquisitions including Buy.com (US), PriceMinister (France), Kobo (Canada) and later Ebates and Viber.
Launched 'Englishnization' at Rakuten
Announced plan (March 2010) to make English the primary corporate language within two years to globalize the company.
Named Chairman of the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra
Appointed chairman of the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra (longest-history orchestra in Japan).
Englishnization featured in Harvard Business Review case study
HBS published a case study on Rakuten's Englishnization initiative initiated in 2010.
Rakuten Eagles return to Sendai stadium after 2011 earthquake; home game April 29
After the March 2011 Tōhoku earthquake/tsunami, Rakuten restored the stadium; Eagles played a sell-out home game on April 29, 2011.
Resigned from Keidanren
Quit Japan's business federation (Keidanren) in June 2011 over policy disagreements after Fukushima disaster.
Awarded Harvard Business School Alumni Achievement Award
Received HBS Alumni Achievement Award, one of the school's highest honors (announced/featured Jan 2012).
Rakuten leads $100 million investment in Pinterest
Rakuten participated in/led a $100M funding round for Pinterest (strategic minority investment).
Launched/served as Representative Director of JANE
Japanese Association of New Economy (JANE) launched (June 1, 2012); Mikitani became Representative Director.
Published Marketplace 3.0: Rewriting the Rules of Borderless Business
Released 'Marketplace 3.0' (St. Martin's Press, 2013) describing Rakuten's globalization strategy.
Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles win 2013 Japan Series
Golden Eagles captured the Japan Series title in 2013, symbolic recovery for region after 2011 disaster.
Rakuten listed on Tokyo Stock Exchange (First Section) & major growth metrics
By 2013–2017 Rakuten expanded: by 2017 >14,000 employees, >42,000 shops, nearly US$6B sales, >100M Japanese members; Rakuten listed on TSE first section in 2013.
Rakuten sales milestone cited (~US$6 billion)
By 2017 sources cite Rakuten sales near US$6 billion and membership >100 million in Japan; used here as company growth milestone (2013–2017 reporting).
Rakuten acquires Vissel Kobe (ownership transferred to Rakuten)
While Mikitani had purchased Vissel Kobe via Crimson Group in 1995, Rakuten formally acquired the team in 2014.
Published The Power to Compete (with Ryoichi Mikitani)
Co-authored 'The Power to Compete: An Economist and an Entrepreneur on Revitalizing Japan in the Global Economy' (2014).
Awarded Chevalier of the Legion of Honour (France)
Received rank of Chevalier in France's National Order of the Legion of Honour (acknowledging contributions to economy/culture).
Board membership and strategic minority investments (Lyft, Pinterest stake)
Mikitani/Rakuten took minority stakes in Pinterest and Lyft; Mikitani joined Lyft's board (2015).
Joined Lyft board as director (minority investor in Lyft)
Mikitani took a board seat at Lyft following Rakuten's minority investment; serves as Rakuten's international board connection.
Rakuten featured in Forbes & made major telecom bet (reported $5.5B expansion plans)
Media reports (2017–2019) note Mikitani's large investments (multi-billion-dollar) to build Rakuten Mobile/telecom platform; strategic capital deployment.
Co-founded Kosmos Holding with Gerard Piqué
Partnered with FC Barcelona player Gerard Piqué to found Kosmos Holding, an investment group focused on sports, media and entertainment.
Rakuten becomes global partner of FC Barcelona and jersey partner of Golden State Warriors
July 2017: Rakuten named Main Global Partner & Official Innovation & Entertainment Partner of FC Barcelona; Sept 2017: became first-ever jersey partner of Golden State Warriors.
Awarded Order of Merit (Grand Duchy of Luxembourg)
Received Grand Duchy of Luxembourg Order of Merit in 2017.
Received Spain–Japan Business Contribution Award
Rakuten / Mikitani honored by Spanish Chamber of Commerce for 2017 contributions.
Published Business-Do: The Way to Successful Leadership
Released 'Business-Do' (English edition/release noted on Rakuten.today; book originally 2018).
Kosmos Holding acquires Davis Cup (tennis)
Kosmos, the sports investment group co-founded by Mikitani, acquired the Davis Cup tennis rights (announced early 2018).
Kosmos acquires FC Andorra
Kosmos Holding (co-founded by Mikitani) acquired Spanish club FC Andorra (reported Dec 12, 2018).
Rakuten begins mobile network operations (Rakuten Mobile)
Rakuten became Japan's newest mobile network operator in 2019; strategic expansion into telecommunications.
Donated ¥1 billion to the Ukrainian government
Announced donation of ¥1,000,000,000 (~US$8.7M) to support Ukraine during Russian invasion.
Invited to White House state dinner for PM Fumio Kishida
Mikitani was among guests at the state dinner hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden honoring Japan's Prime Minister (Apr 10, 2024).
Key Achievement Ages
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