One of the worst times to start a business in Japan was probably 1992.
The asset price bubble had just burst and the effect on the Japanese economy was devastating. That year alone, the rate of business bankruptcies rose to 66%, ushering in the country’s Lost Decade.
But in March of 1992, Vickie Paradise Green established Paradigm, primarily to publish The ACCJ Journal. With a few drafting tables and some of the earliest Apple Macs, Vickie and her team rolled up their sleeves and somehow managed to survive those tough early years.
Over the first 15 years or so, we added many other magazine publications, as well as corporate communications and design work to our roster. But as more firms began seriously considering their online presence, we quickly embraced website design as one of our key services.
Today, we are an agency fully focused on digital, branding, and strategy, working at the intersection of communication, design, and technology. We produce global creative campaigns for Fortune 500 firms, and we also help enthusiastic entrepreneurs in Japan get off to a good start.
“With the dot-com crash, the Lehman shock, the 2011 Tohoku triple disaster, and the coronavirus pandemic, I’ve often looked up into the night sky and yelled, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me!’,” says Vickie. “But despite all the challenges, I wouldn’t have done anything different. Seeing Paradigm through birth, adolescence, and now established as a mature leader in its field is one of the proudest achievements of my life.”
As Paradigm marks 30 years — and we pop open a magnum of Champagne to celebrate — there is nothing we value more than our reputation as one of Japan’s leading digital creative agencies.
