Japan’s fish-eating culture is attracting global attention, but the fishing industry currently faces challenges like labor shortages and an aging workforce. Amid these struggles, a marketplace app called “UUUO” is gaining traction. We spoke with the team to learn how they’ve entered the industry, understood its needs, and grown their business.

Taihaku Tsuchiya | Director & CPO, UUUO Inc.

Taihaku joined Cookpad Inc. as a new graduate, where he was responsible for the development of recipe websites and the Cookpad Android app. After transferring to PT. COOKPAD DIGITAL INDONESIA, He joined UUUO to make a greater impact on the fishing industry.

Misaki Kubosaka | UI/UX Designer, UUUO Inc.

Misaki joined Cookpad Inc. as a new graduate, where she was responsible for launching new apps and UI/UX for the company’s iOS/Android apps. She felt a deep sense of fulfillment as a designer in tackling the complex challenges within the fishing industry, which led her to join UUUO Inc. in 2022.

Entering the fresh fish marketplace with the ‘UUUO’ app.

To start off, could you tell us a little bit about UUUO?

Taihaku: UUUO is a B2B marketplace that connects sellers and buyers of fresh fish. Fresh fish is brought in from fishing ports across the country and traded through auctions. The app is split into two apps: one for ordering, and one for listing due to the differing needs of sellers and buyers.

Taihaku: Our founder, Kazutomo, was born near Ajiro Port in Tottori Prefecture. His family had been in the fishing industry for generations, owning multiple boats. Over the years, as he visited home, he noticed fewer and fewer boats and a growing sense of emptiness at the port, which made him realize the industry was in decline. He heard things like, “We used to sell fish at a good price, but now every time we go fishing, we’re losing money,” and “I don’t want to pass this declining business onto my children.” He understood that the problem lay in the distribution structure itself, which is why he founded UUUO.

Could you explain the structure of the fishing industry’s supply chain and where UUUO fits into it?

Taihaku: Fish caught by fishermen are first brought to one of the approximately 2,700 fishing ports across the country. At these ports, wholesalers gather and participate in auctions to purchase the fish. The fish bought at the auction are then sold at markets or listed on UUUO. The buyers are typically supermarkets, restaurant chefs, and wholesalers who sell to businesses.

Within that supply chain, what did you identify as the main issue?

Taihaku: The main issue was that the buyers are fixed, and communication primarily happens through phone calls and faxes, with a lot of one-on-one exchanges that make it hard to increase productivity. To better understand the industry and identify these issues, we obtained wholesaler licenses and purchasing rights (the right to buy fish) and actually participated in the industry as players, taking part in the buying and selling process.

Wow! You went as far as to obtain licenses to understand the industry better!

Taihaku: When we first approached people to test our prototype, we were often turned away or met with responses like, “My hands are wet, so I can’t use a smartphone now.” That really made us realize how little we understood about the industry. By actually being directly involved, we were able to form a more realistic picture of what was actually feasible.

I heard that it was the first time in over a decade that a new player entered that particular port. Since obtaining the license requires approval from other wholesalers, Kazutomo had to visit the port numerous times.

Misaki: Understanding the industry and the field is so crucial. As part of our approach, every engineer and designer at UUUO goes out to observe the market and conduct interviews. When you see something with your own eyes, it becomes much easier to understand what is feasible. For example, the “shipping label printer feature” that we came up with during our observations has been very well received. What we experienced firsthand in the field is directly contributing to our product development.

Understanding the time crunch from selling, and freshness standards from buying.

Starting with your entry as a new player in the industry, how did you then evolve into developing the marketplace?

Taihaku: First, we created a base called ‘UUUO Base’ at a fishing port in Tottori, where we obtained a wholesaler license, and we used UUUO to buy and sell fish there (the base was closed in 2022). Our initial focus was on improving the seller side. We first worked on acquiring buyers who could purchase large quantities, such as supermarkets and wholesalers, and then streamlined the process for sellers to list their products efficiently. This allowed us to showcase a wider range of items, which ultimately contributed to the growth of GMV (Gross Merchandise Value), the KPI we focused on at the time.

Taihaku: As the volume of transactions gradually increased, we faced a challenge: the number and variety of fish we could offer was limited, and sometimes we couldn’t list fish due to bad weather and no catch. So, the next step was to create a system where other wholesalers at different fishing ports could also list their fish on the app in partnership with us. This way, we started by listing fish ourselves while finding buyers, and then gradually expanded the number of sellers, maintaining a balance between supply and demand.

What insights did you gain from buying and selling?

Misaki: From the seller’s side, what really stood out to me was how much of it is a race against time. The process of taking orders and shipping fish caught that day before their freshness starts to degrade is very unique. We focused on improving our product to make the listing and shipping process more efficient and faster.

From the buyer’s side, I realized that freshness is crucial. There’s always a bit of anxiety about whether the fish will meet expectations in terms of freshness when buying through the app. To reduce that concern, we’ve made efforts to provide more information through various means.

What features does the app have to address these concerns?

Misaki: We have a feature called the “Freshness Rating Function” that makes it easy for buyers to understand the freshness of the fish. Freshness is mainly evaluated based on categories like “suitable for raw consumption” or “for cooking.” Depending on the fish, some are never eaten raw. For shrimp, color is important, and for crabs, whether they’re alive or dead is crucial.

We’ve grouped fish by type and established different criteria for each group. The knowledge and experience of the team members who were involved in buying and selling at UUUO Base have been really helpful in applying these criteria and groupings.

Transforming Communication: Maximizing Time Before the Auction

Earlier, we heard that the selling process is a race against time. In transitioning from face-to-face and phone-based, one-on-one communication to digital, were there any challenges or considerations you had to keep in mind?

Misaki: Our app allows two types of listing options: selling fish after purchasing them, and pre-ordering from customers. In the traditional process, before an auction, it was common to call and confirm how many cases a buyer would purchase. The second option in our app mimics that process.

Taihaku: When participating as a wholesaler,  there’s a limit to how many calls you can make before the morning auction. If the auction is in 30 minutes, you can only manage about 10 calls at 2-3 minutes each. Naturally, you’d call your big customers first, and with some clients, the conversation can turn into a long chat rather than just business. This makes it hard to find time to reach out to new customers.

It sounds like you’re swamped with following up with existing customers. And with so many calls in such a short amount of time, it must be hard to maintain quality communication.

Taihaku: Sellers often approach short phone calls with the mindset of, “I’ll provide the information if you’re ready to buy.” However, for a sale to happen, details like size, price range, quantity, and freshness need to be discussed. Sometimes, even after several conversations, the sale doesn’t happen, leaving both sides feeling like the effort was wasted. On the other hand, buyers can become frustrated when sellers adopt an attitude of, “I won’t share information unless you commit to buying.”

With UUUO’s mass notification feature, we can efficiently send information to a wide audience, which many users find valuable. By acting as an intermediary, UUUO also helps reduce some of the communication challenges.

That makes sense. But I imagine there were users at first who found it a hassle to input information into the app when they were used to doing everything over the phone.

Taihaku: We address that with a feature called “Copy Listing.” Since the types of fish caught each season don’t change much, once you register the details, you can easily reuse the same information, making the process much more efficient.

Misaki: The experience of listing fish is very important, so we’ve made sure that, in general, no typing is required. Everything is done by simply tapping options. As a result, most users can list their fish in under a minute.

It’s great to see how you’re creating more opportunities and supporting the flow of information. I think it’s a huge win for the industry, especially given how challenging it can be to develop new customer relationships.

Taihaku: Many of our users value this aspect. Some are even using the app for test marketing. For example, one seller told us, ‘I never sold much in the Osaka area before, but after listing on UUUO, I found that the fish sold surprisingly well there.’ It’s encouraging to hear that they’re discovering new opportunities.

From the seller’s side, there was always a limit to how many calls they could make. If fish didn’t sell as expected and there was leftover stock, calling existing customers out of the blue to offer it was often awkward. But with UUUO, sellers can regularly send updates, making it easier to offer fish to customers, even in those situations.

On the buyer’s side, traditionally you’d have to visit suppliers, build relationships, and then make purchases. But with UUUO, buyers can easily get the fish they need without all that legwork. It’s exciting to see how technology is reshaping the market and creating new flows.

Making Purchasing Fish Easier: Introducing New Distribution Models Through Innovative Features

Are there any specific features that really capture the unique aspects of UUUO?

Misaki: Originally, most of our users on the buying side were retail buyers and wholesalers, but recently we’ve been expanding our reach to restaurants as well.

One big challenge has been the purchase quantities. Currently, the base is the market transaction volume, so the typical lot size is around 5 kilograms per fish species. However, for restaurants, that’s often too much and difficult to use. We’ve received a lot of feedback from them asking for smaller quantities.

To tackle this challenge, we’ve recently introduced the “Small Batch Negotiation Feature.” This feature lets UUUO collect and aggregate small-batch requests from buyers before relaying them to sellers. Since selling in smaller quantities involves additional costs, such as repackaging, it’s been a significant barrier. Our approach is to first gauge the demand from buyers and determine how willing sellers are to meet these requests, with UUUO acting as an intermediary during this testing phase.

Being able to move as a player in the market, you’re able to do things that others might not be able to, right? How have the reactions been so far?

Misaki: We’ve actually seen more inquiries for small batches than we expected, and when we reached out to the sellers, most were willing to accommodate these requests. Right now, we’re applying the lessons from this test phase to build a system where small batches can be bought and sold without us having to intervene. 

Changing the business practices in the seafood industry and opening doors for younger generations.

What kind of product are you aiming to create moving forward?

Taihaku: As a marketplace, we want to keep expanding. For buyers, we aim to solve the issue of limited product availability and increase the number of listings. On the seller side, we want to make it easier to showcase products and help sellers make quick, successful sales. Right now, there are cases where it takes time to sell depending on the timing of the listing or the type of fish, so our goal is to create a system that delivers the right information to potential buyers at the right time.

Are there any challenges you’re facing or areas you’d like to improve?

Misaki: As the number of products increases, it becomes harder for buyers to find what they want. We need to improve the system to help buyers find products more easily. This means enhancing the accuracy of recommendations and search functionalities to make the platform more user-friendly and intuitive.

Also, since the app is currently designed for people who have a certain level of knowledge about fish, it might be a bit difficult for restaurant owners or others in the foodservice industry. By improving the app’s usability, lowering the barriers for first-time buyers, and making it easier to purchase in small batches, we hope to open up more opportunities and expand the user base.

Taihaku: We’re focused on creating a system where sellers and buyers continue to connect and trade actively and independently. In the past, we’ve coordinated the transactions as the middlemen, but moving forward, we hope to see more ‘mini-UUUOs’ or users who can fully utilize the platform on their own. We also plan to strengthen our efforts in sharing cases and best practices.

This product was born out of a sense of the industry’s challenges, but how do you envision contributing to the industry moving forward?

Taihaku: We hope that UUUO can be one of the solutions to the labor shortage in the industry. The industry has relied on years of experience, with transactions mainly done over the phone. However, we want to make it possible for younger, less experienced people to use UUUO to list and sell products, or for people who have little connection to the production areas to use the app to source products and meet customer needs.

In fact, we’ve heard stories where new university graduates were told by their superiors to use UUUO for direct sourcing, and the restaurants they sold to were very happy with the results. Thanks to UUUO, younger people are finding it easier to enter the industry, and new ways of selling and sourcing are emerging. We hope to continue driving that change.

Special Thanks to:
UUUO, inc. – Corporate Website

UUUO Service Website