One year after R/GA became independent from IPG, Anthony Baker, Managing Director of R/GA Japan, says the split has “fully unlocked” the agency’s ability to operate as a creative innovation company, allowing it to invest in multi-year horizons and fundamentally change how it operates.
In our recent conversation, Baker discusses conviction economics—structuring engagements around proof of value rather than volume—why agencies must become systems rather than service providers, the challenges and rewards of taking Japanese IP global, and how AI is reshaping creative work.
R/GA has now been independent from IPG for a year. What has that meant for how the Japan operation runs – and where have you felt the difference most?
For our clients, independence is one of our biggest differentiators in Japan. It has fully unlocked our ability to operate as a true creative innovation company. We are one of the very few truly global creative companies that can operate with the flexibility and speed of a boutique agency, while integrating world-class global talent and capability. That combination is extremely rare in Japan.
Japan is a market where the dominant playbook favors volume, traditional media, and trend-following. When these leaders look for the best creative innovation partners in Japan, they are usually forced to compromise. Domestic agencies know the local rules deeply but operate in isolation from global markets. Foreign holding company agencies understand global strategy but are constrained by rigid P&L structures and the short-term pressures of the quarterly cycle. We sit in neither camp.
Independence is one of our biggest differentiators in Japan. It has fully unlocked our ability to operate as a true creative innovation company.
Freed from those constraints, we can invest in multi-year horizons and fundamentally change how we operate. We are rebuilding around a new premise: agencies must become systems, not just service providers. By shifting away from the traditional billable-hour model and melding human labor with AI compute, we are redefining our workforce to prioritize hybrid creatives – part technologist, part storyteller.
This allows us to swap safe predictability for a fast-moving model that gives us the freedom to tailor our commercial models to client needs. We can embed dedicated teams directly with clients, build strategic partnerships, run cost-effective AI-powered experimentation, and execute end-to-end campaigns across Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Hong Kong, and the US without holding company friction.
We don’t hand over theoretical playbooks; we engineer reusable systems and products rooted in proven effectiveness and measurable ROI, explicitly driving revenue growth. That agility is not a nice-to-have in Japan. It is the difference between a traditional, disconnected campaign and work with real, lasting impact.
You’ve talked about a shift from throughput economics to conviction economics – structuring engagements around proof-of-value logic rather than billing for volume. What does that look like in practice?
Conviction economics starts with a simple commitment to address the immediate reality our clients face: every project we run is grounded in a deep understanding of our clients’ business, their market, their industry, and the culture they are operating in, but more importantly, the pressures they are under. They are not interested in work that fills a media plan or pushes media inventory. They want proof, and they want work that moves the market.
In practice, that means we set clear objectives at the outset, and we build the measurement, analysis, and reporting to track impact across everything we do: product, services, strategy, design and storytelling. We pursue tangible business outcomes, specifically driving measurable revenue growth.We make those results visible, and we discuss them openly with clients. That transparency is what makes multi-year partnerships possible.
They are not interested in work that fills a media plan or pushes media inventory. They want proof, and they want work that moves the market.
Our longest relationships reflect this focus on proven effectiveness and ROI. Google, ten years. Shiseido, nine years. Nike, nine years. PONOS, four years. Fujitsu, three years. Arc’teryx, two years. Yanmar, one year. Those numbers are not a coincidence. Clients stay because we are charging for value and impact, not hours and volume.
R/GA has partnered with clients including Shiseido and Yanmar — brands the agency describes as requiring deep cultural resonance. What do those wins suggest about what Japanese brands are looking for from creative technology partners right now, and how are those expectations evolving?
There is a specific problem that Japanese companies going global consistently run into. Domestic partners know Japan, but don’t understand international markets. Foreign agencies understand global strategy, but don’t understand Japan – its business culture, its creative codes, its operating model and its consumer logic. The result is execution that either plays too locally or loses its Japanese identity entirely when it crosses borders.
Our clients come to us because we sit at that intersection. We have deep local roots in Japan and the capacity to understand cultural insights, IP, and brand identity, and we can translate that into global executions that hold their integrity. Our teams are seamlessly integrated across disciplines and offices, and that’s something very few companies can do in practice.
The result is execution that either plays too locally or loses its Japanese identity entirely when it crosses borders.
Shiseido is a clear example. We have had embedded teams working with them for years. We have run dozens of strategic workshops and helped them drive their global digital innovation programs, as well as completely redefine some of their most iconic brands, leveraging a 150-year heritage. That kind of continuity is what makes genuinely global work possible at scale.
PONOS is the inverse proof. A Kyoto-based independent game company with a quirky, distinctly Japanese IP. We have helped them grow their market presence in the US, Korea, Taiwan and Japan without diluting what makes them special. The Japanese character of their brand is the asset. Protecting it while adapting the expression is our work, which we have successfully delivered over the last four years across all those markets with fantastic, tangible business results.
We have done similar work for global brands like Nike, Arc’teryx, Google, and Cartier, and continue working with Japanese brands going global like Sapporo, Fujitsu and Yanmar.
With AI removing the production bottleneck and freeing up capacity, the broad industry reaction has been faster localization and content at scale. What’s your take on that, and what has been R/GA Japan’s response?
Localization and content at scale have been the decade-long broken promise of enterprise consultants. AI is giving it a second life. The pitch is the same. The results will be, too.
At R/GA, we refuse to enter that race to the bottom. Instead, we are reimagining the intersection of Brand, Product, and Experience to drive client ROI.
Localization and content at scale have been the decade-long broken promise of enterprise consultants. AI is giving it a second life. The pitch is the same. The results will be, too.
For us, AI is the engine that can scale human craft. By leveraging cross-border collaboration and diverse perspectives, our teams use AI technologies to anticipate cultural shifts and deepen customer connections.
We deploy AI to elevate the emotional core of the brands we partner with. This boundary-pushing creativity translates directly to the bottom line – creating distinct market advantages, building lasting loyalty, and accelerating real business growth. True commercial innovation happens when technology serves the human experience. That is what we are building toward.
Can you share some recent work from R/GA Japan that you think reflects where the agency is heading — and why it stands out to you?
Our four-year partnership with PONOS is something we are genuinely proud of. They are an independent, ambitious, and inherently fun gaming company from Kyoto. The core principle of everything we do together is simple: it has to be fun – for us, for the client, and for the gamers.
Together, we have proven that unconventional storytelling that integrates into a game’s universe drives far more quality engagement than paid media alone. People have an enormous appetite for brands that make the effort to create experiences they feel part of. That is the kind of work we want to be known for.
Arc’teryx is a brand we connect with on a deep, values and purpose level. Their mission is to create premium products that get people into the outdoors – and we believe that connecting people with nature is genuinely human and worth serving. They believe in craft and quality. So do we; it is embedded in our DNA. That shared foundation is what allows us to work as partners rather than as a vendor fulfilling a brief. Our work spans strategy, storytelling, design, technology, and data. It is a relationship built on the same trust and creative ambition we bring to every long-term partnership.
Regarding the market in general, what are some of the most significant shifts you’re seeing in how Japanese brands are thinking about creative investment right now?
The most significant shift is around IP. While Japan has always produced iconic IP – across gaming, product design, and entertainment – the ambition to export that IP globally is far more deliberate now. Japanese cultural roots create genuine differentiation. The challenge is that the traditional playbook for this – heavy paid media and celebrity rosters – does not travel well and becomes absurdly expensive in markets like the US. As a result, we are working with companies who are thinking seriously about how to grow IP internationally on its own terms, without the shortcuts that erode what makes it valuable.
For global manufacturing and product giants like Fujitsu, Yanmar, and Shiseido, the other significant shift is the move toward integrated services and solutions. Brands are building out adjacent offerings: pre- and post-purchase services and sustainability solutions that diversify revenue and deepen the relationship with customers beyond the core product. This shift creates a very different kind of brief, and a much richer opportunity for creative technology partners.
While Japan has always produced iconic IP – across gaming, product design, and entertainment – the ambition to export that IP globally is far more deliberate now. Japanese cultural roots create genuine differentiation.
Finally, we are seeing the rapid emergence of AI-powered content production studios. Companies are investing in experienced talent and building AI-native content pipelines to offer high-margin production services. While it is a legitimate bet on a niche opportunity,the window is likely much shorter than most of these companies expect, as generative AI tools become highly capable right out of the box. The players that succeed will be those integrating genuine domain expertise into their pipelines, not just the technology.
For brands looking to succeed in Japan – whether entering the market or going deeper – what’s your advice?
Having turned the R/GA Japan operation around to deliver four consecutive years of double-digit growth, a few things stand out for me to share.
First, establish a clear, differentiated reason to be here. Competing with domestic companies on their own terms is a race to the bottom, and one that foreign companies rarely win. You need to know precisely what you offer that no one else in the market can, and to which clients and industries that actually matters.
Second, secure the right team. Japan has scarce great talent, not because of a lack of skills, but because of a decade-long enterprise work system and employee lifecycle. Add genuine bilingual capability, and it becomes even more rare. Building a high-diversity, high-serendipity environment takes time, and there are no shortcuts. The quality of the team is the quality of the work.
Third, build a real cultural connection. And I mean real connection, not research reports and YouTube videos. As a foreigner running a creative innovation operation in Japan, I can tell you that depth of cultural understanding is not optional. You have to experience the market yourself. Speaking the language, even imperfectly, goes a long way. You have to know history, culture, and art. You have to nurture a wide network of people across industries, companies, and crafts, and you have to be connected to relevant communities.
Fourth, be honest about the value you deliver. Japan rewards partners who are clear, practical, and consistent. Functional value is greatly appreciated. Choose narratives that communicate real value, not abstract promises that sound strong in a pitch and fall apart in delivery. The market has a long memory.
