Is there any Japanese culture and/or jobs+companies in the Midlands?

WiresDreamDisasters

Title says it all really - I actually don't know. I'm too London centric these days. Are there any Japanese hubs in the Midlands?

monquixote

Cambridge seems to have quite a significant Japanese population.

I know that's not the midlands, but I also know you sometimes work in Cambridge.

thecolourbox

From a Birmingham/Black Country perspective, there's not really a specific area I'd associate as a bit of a Japanese cultural hub, whereas for other Asian cultures places would spring to mind straight away and would have not just restaurants/food shops but actual cultural centres who may be able to advise. I know Birmingham has the Chinese Quarter which actually tends to focus on more than just Chinese influence these days, but even then I think it's not really the kind of thing you're after as my experience of it is that it's more night-time economy or food shops.

Birmingham University in Selly Oak has a large number of international students (including a good number of Japanese students), and teaches Japanese/Business joint honours degrees as well. Would it be worth speculatively contacting somebody at the uni or their guild of students (their name for the student union) as they may be able to point you in a direction? They have a Japan based society within their guild, email address is  japan@guild.bham.ac.uk and they have a page with a Facebook link which you may be able to pester them on for some info. Japan (guildofstudents.com)

EricTheWeary

Certainly around Telford. Lot of Japanese companies were attracted to that area such as Makita tools. 

Quite a lot of Telford is a bit naff but plenty of nice surrounding areas, Shrewsbury is a lovely small city, picturesque Ironbridge,etc. 

Wikipedia also suggests around Derby as Toyota imported technical staff. 

To what extent Brexit will bugger this up I don’t know as for Makita, Toyota,etc, the U.K. was promised as a gateway to the European market. But that may be true of the Japanese population in London as well. 

EricTheWeary

monquixote said:

Cambridge seems to have quite a significant Japanese population.

I know that's not the midlands, but I also know you sometimes work in Cambridge.

Where we stayed in Cambridge, Cherry Hinton(?), there seemed to be a significant Asian population although the shops seemed to be Chinese? 

EricTheWeary said:

Certainly around Telford. Lot of Japanese companies were attracted to that area such as Makita tools. 

Quite a lot of Telford is a bit naff but plenty of nice surrounding areas, Shrewsbury is a lovely small city, picturesque Ironbridge,etc. 

Shrewsbury I know has a specialist Japanese catering shop, it’s a relatively established Japanese community in that area rather than a student based one. There’s a school in Telford that runs weekend classes for Japanese students settling in the U.K. There is a Japanese garden in the town park sponsored by the battery/ audio company Maxell who have their U.K. base in Telford. 

thecolourbox said:

From a Birmingham/Black Country perspective, there's not really a specific area I'd associate as a bit of a Japanese cultural hub, whereas for other Asian cultures places would spring to mind straight away and would have not just restaurants/food shops but actual cultural centres who may be able to advise. I know Birmingham has the Chinese Quarter which actually tends to focus on more than just Chinese influence these days, but even then I think it's not really the kind of thing you're after as my experience of it is that it's more night-time economy or food shops.

Birmingham University in Selly Oak has a large number of international students (including a good number of Japanese students), and teaches Japanese/Business joint honours degrees as well. Would it be worth speculatively contacting somebody at the uni or their guild of students (their name for the student union) as they may be able to point you in a direction? They have a Japan based society within their guild, email address is  japan@guild.bham.ac.uk and they have a page with a Facebook link which you may be able to pester them on for some info. Japan (guildofstudents.com)

Certainly some Japanese food in Wing Yip which is the huge Asian supermarket in Birmingham so someone is buying it. 

RaymondLin

I wouldn't use Wing Yip's stock of Japanese food as a barometer for Japanese local populations.  Growing up in HK I was exposed to a LOT of Japanese sweets as it's simply the best and the origin of some of the traditional stuff shares with Chinese cuisine so as a Chinese, I love Japanese food and know my way around most of the stuff they sell even if i can't read the Katakana (but i can read the Kanji).

I wish i know the answer to this I am still struggling to find some good authentic Japanese places to eat.  The only one that I liked was Mt Fuji near the Bullring, they even greet you like the Japanese places do when you walk in and you leave.  

But I shall be going up to Shewsbury to visit that Japanese shop though!

EricTheWeary

RaymondLin said:

I wouldn't use Wing Yip's stock of Japanese food as a barometer for Japanese local populations.  Growing up in HK I was exposed to a LOT of Japanese sweets as it's simply the best and the origin of some of the traditional stuff shares with Chinese cuisine so as a Chinese, I love Japanese food and know my way around most of the stuff they sell even if i can't read the Katakana (but i can read the Kanji).

I wish i know the answer to this I am still struggling to find some good authentic Japanese places to eat.  The only one that I liked was Mt Fuji near the Bullring, they even greet you like the Japanese places do when you walk in and you leave.  

But I shall be going up to Shewsbury to visit that Japanese shop though!

I like going to Wing Yip but find it a bit overwhelming and come out with a jar of black bean sauce and a packet of tofu. 

I've no idea how big or good the shop in Shrewsbury is, I just know it exists. But it is a nice old town for a wander around. 

Musicwolf

I worked for a Japanese company with offices and factories across the globe.  Some of our top management in the Automotive SBU was based in the Midlands.

The question for me would be - what qualifications / expertise / experience do you have?  If I were interviewing you for a job I may see the Japanese cultural knowledge as being a tie-breaker, but only if the other boxes were already ticked.  We did have a couple of guys over the years (Japanese speaking Westerners) who we used help bridge the cultural divide in the early years of Japanese ownership, but we sent them over to Japan.  The guys that we had over here were Japanese coming the other way.

WiresDreamDisasters

Musicwolf said:

I worked for a Japanese company with offices and factories across the globe.  Some of our top management in the Automotive SBU was based in the Midlands.

The question for me would be - what qualifications / expertise / experience do you have?  If I were interviewing you for a job I may see the Japanese cultural knowledge as being a tie-breaker, but only if the other boxes were already ticked.  We did have a couple of guys over the years (Japanese speaking Westerners) who we used help bridge the cultural divide in the early years of Japanese ownership, but we sent them over to Japan.  The guys that we had over here were Japanese coming the other way.

It's not for me, I couldn't give a shit; I'll muck in with any old arsehole. It's for the wife - she hates whitey and loves the Emperor.

But seriously, just going through the pros and cons of moving back to the Midlands.

Pros:
Bigger house
Less expensive
More disposable cash
Work from home
Decent schools
More green bits
closer to my family

Cons:
Surrounded by Midlanders
Possible racism
Wife might not get a job
The little 'un gets robbed of all the opportunities that London will offer in the future
Breaks the band quite a bit
Lack of music culture
further away from the wife's family (her sister mainly; her parents live in Tokyo these days)

Shrews

Yes, Japanese workplaces are well established here in Telford. Not sure about the Shrewsbury Japanese catering shop, not heard of that, but my hometown is lovely.  Proper old town steeped in history and of course the birthplace of Charles Darwin, the Brother Cadfael books and a former Britain in Bloom winner with an awesome flower show in August!

Telford is double the size of Shrewsbury and a 'new town' (over 50 years old now, but still gets the label) . Huge expansion still, I'm guessing it will hit 250,000 people within 25 years.  Famously absorbed 5 small towns and built on the land between them, one of them being Ironbridge, home of the worlds first iron bridge, with Telford labelling itself 'the birthplace of industry'.

House prices are MUCH cheaper in Telford. Shrewsbury traffic is a ballache. It's quicker to get from Telford to Shrewsbury than it is to get from one side of Shrewsbury to the other!

Great walking country for both towns, with both near the Welsh mountains and 'little Switzerland' the South Shropshire hills, and of course the sea just over an hour away. Lovely picturesque villages also in the Shropshire countryside. 

Shrewsbury has a lot more charm than Telford, but Telford more cosmopolitan in its demograph which may feel more welcoming to many from overseas. Expect to be looked at if you've got any accent that's different to us locals.  Bloody out-of-towners coming here!

Seriously, both towns are welcoming, friendly and safe, with the typical areas where crime is more common although definitely none that are 'no go'.

Some pics here of Shrewsbury

https://imgur.com/WaMBaoz
https://imgur.com/A7RYuwb
https://imgur.com/RrzUECy
https://imgur.com/AkQE3YG
https://imgur.com/LK6vcOm
https://imgur.com/CrQBTGW
https://imgur.com/XVIk5RI
https://imgur.com/9Vnu7nc
https://imgur.com/i1kldZC
https://imgur.com/dVPHamv
https://imgur.com/srT6dl3
https://imgur.com/a7M0sgV
https://imgur.com/6RndLal
https://imgur.com/tERdDxq
https://imgur.com/w9gAxNd

Musicwolf

From your list of pros and cons the only one I see that relates to the Midlands is being close to your family.  Aside from that it looks more like a 'stay in / move out of London' decision.  From my infrequent visits to the capital, and from the time when I had a girlfriend down there (a long time ago), it's pretty much a unique lifestyle.  Have you reach the point in your life where that no longer holds it's apeal?

blobb

This is the Japanese shop in Shrewsbury. Really lovely but small. It's in The Parade.

https://www.setonaikai.co.uk/

dano

I work for a Japanese company. There are also a couple or really good Japanese restaurants in Chester and Liverpool. Massive Chinatown in Liverpool.

Manchester has similar

dano

From memory Telford has a big Mitutoyo facility, I've driven past it a number of times, several years ago 

Ddigger

I can't help, but have you had a look at the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry website?

Www.jcci.org.uk

That might help create a list of companies at the right location.

Would the Japanese Embassy have a list of companies working in the UK?

I work with a Japanese engineer at the moment, but am at the other end of the country and Midlands means nothing to mean in terms of towns etc. 

shuikit

My Mrs grew up in Derby who says that there's a bit of a Japanese community there due to the Toyota factory.

WiresDreamDisasters

Shrewsbury does look nice. I think I could stomach living in a small picturesque town, at least for a year or so. Not sure the wife could/would!

WezV

shuikit said:

My Mrs grew up in Derby who says that there's a bit of a Japanese community there due to the Toyota factory.

Yeah.  I'm the other side of the Toyota factory in Burton.  My dad worked there when it first opened. 

Not aware of much of a Japanese culture in Burton, we've only just got our first sushi place.  Frankly, I dont expect it will be there long.

mudslide73

WiresDreamDisasters said:

Shrewsbury does look nice. I think I could stomach living in a small picturesque town, at least for a year or so. Not sure the wife could/would!

It is really lovely. Some great pubs and a great football club if you like that kind of thing. 

ToneControl

EricTheWeary said:

Certainly around Telford. Lot of Japanese companies were attracted to that area such as Makita tools. 

Quite a lot of Telford is a bit naff but plenty of nice surrounding areas, Shrewsbury is a lovely small city, picturesque Ironbridge,etc. 

Wikipedia also suggests around Derby as Toyota imported technical staff. 

To what extent Brexit will bugger this up I don’t know as for Makita, Toyota,etc, the U.K. was promised as a gateway to the European market. But that may be true of the Japanese population in London as well. 

There are some excellent value houses in nice areas near Telford, definitely worth considering, Shrewsbury is a lovely old cathedral city, like Lichfield, Chester

ToneControl

I'd guess that with it being the hippest large UK city from the view of foreign visitors (according to Lonely planet etc), Manchester would probably have a lot of younger Japanese people living and studying there

I have no proof though