Source: Peatix

[Local resources x local issues x business creation] Challenge Niigata 2025 matching event will be held at SHIBUYA QWS on July 25th!
We will be holding a matching event to mark the start of "Challenge Niigata 2025," an initiative in which municipalities and local businesses in Niigata Prefecture will work together to solve problems they face.

Challenge Niigata is a project that matches the various challenges and local resources faced by municipalities and local companies in Niigata Prefecture with companies to co-create new opportunities, linking problem solving to attracting companies through open innovation.
▶For more information about Challenge Niigata: https://www.challenge-niigata.com/

At this event, municipalities and local companies from within the prefecture will make pitches about the specific issues they are facing and what they would like to work on with companies they would like to match with, and they will also hold matching interviews at individual booths.

This is the perfect event for companies looking to expand into local areas, develop new businesses, explore new markets, or find a place to demonstrate their capabilities!
We look forward to your participation and suggestions!

【Event Summary】
■ date and time
Friday, July 25, 2025 14:00-17:00 (Doors open 13:30)

■ location
[Location] SHIBUYA QWS (15th floor, Shibuya SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE SQUARE Tower, 2-24-12 Shibuya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo)
[Online] Broadcast via Zoom

Capacity ■
Venue participation: 40 people (up to 1 person per company)
* First come, first served. Registration will close once capacity is reached.

■ Application to participate
Please apply by Thursday, July 24th using the application form below.
Challenge Niigata 2025 Matching Event Participation Application Form
　https://forms.gle/vaS3CyyPGtFudSim6

【program】
14:00~15:1
①Opening (greetings from the organizers, business explanation)
②Theme pitch (3-minute pitch by municipalities and local businesses)

15:30~17:00
3) Matching time (individual interviews with local municipalities and companies)

<In addition to the local issues facing municipalities, we have also added issues facing businesses in the prefecture!>

Challenge Niigata started in 2023 and this year marks its third year.

Starting this time, the scope has been expanded beyond just municipalities within the prefecture to include issues and themes faced by companies within the prefecture, making it possible to directly match with companies.

We will further promote co-creation with companies both within and outside the prefecture that have solutions to the challenges faced by locally rooted companies.

Issues facing municipalities and local businesses for which proposals are being solicited
We are calling for proposals for seven issues from six cities and towns in Niigata Prefecture, and eight issues from eight local companies.

Each challenge is published on the Challenge Niigata website: "List of participating municipalities and local companies and their challenges for 2025."
▶Challenge Niigata homepage: "List of participating municipalities and local companies in FY2025 and their challenges"
　https://www.challenge-niigata.com/matching2025

[City/town/village issue themes]
Niigata City
Creating new value through effective use of public assets
Sanjo City
The local human resources department will work together with the local community to recruit, train, and retain talent
Joetsu City
Utilization of city-owned unused property such as closed schools
Uonuma City
Effective use of agricultural by-products (tarano-me logs)
Uonuma City
Creating a smart dual-area living support model
Minamiuonuma City
Bringing new appeal to the area in front of Muikamachi Station. ~Looking for partners to create excitement~
Izumozaki Town
Making effective use of vacant town-owned houses

[Challenges facing local businesses]
Pearl Metal (Sanjo City)
Expanding sales channels through collaboration between national brands from different industries and outdoor brand (Captain Stag)
MAD PRODUCTION (Tsubame City/Sanjo City)
Bringing video creators to the regions! ~Tsubame-Sanjo Craftsmanship Film Festival Project~
Uchiyama Welding Industry (Niigata City)
Support for expanding "new business partners" and "new business partners"
*New business partners = business partners with whom we have built mature relationships of trust
Kumakura Shearing (Tsubame City)
Expanding sales of B2C and finished products
Expanding sales channels by improving corporate value through decarbonization, etc.
ao (Itoigawa City)
Not delivering "customer service value" to elderly people who cannot visit stores
*Customer service value = the value that customers can feel by communicating the appeal of a product face-to-face, which cannot be conveyed through mail order or written information alone.
Satoyama Public Relations (Tokamachi City)
Joint implementation of corporate training and smart commuting agriculture for rice terraces in Tokamachi City (Uonuma area)
Sun Frontier Sado (Sado City)
I need some ideas to increase the number of tourists visiting Sado in the winter!
Iwasaki (Nagaoka City)
We want to deliver safe, high-quality frozen Japanese sweets to customers in the U.S., Asia, and other countries.

■Online and archive streaming available!

In addition to participating in person, this event will be streamed live and archived online.
In addition, pitch materials and videos from municipalities and local companies will be made available on the website at a later date.

Individual interviews during matching time on the day of the event are limited to in-person attendees.
You can talk directly with local government and business representatives, make business proposals and take the next step. For effective matching, we recommend attending the event in person!

Even companies that cannot attend the event on the day can make proposals and matching at a later date!
An entry period will be set up to solicit proposals from interested municipalities and local businesses.
You can carefully consider the online broadcast or archived viewing of the session, and then submit a proposal for problem-solving or co-creation.

■ Matching process
This program provides total support, from digging deep into the issues facing municipalities and local businesses to matching with businesses, forming projects after matching, and providing support to help businesses commercialize their projects, with the aim of carrying out small projects within the fiscal year.

There are two ways to match
Matching will be carried out in two ways: "real matching" through on-site interviews and "form matching" after the event.

In the case of "real matching" where participants participate at a local venue
On the day of the event, participants will hear pitches from municipalities and local companies, and then be matched with the municipalities and local companies through individual interviews.
Companies that reach an agreement with the municipality or local company on the spot, such as by coordinating a business proposal and the next meeting to prepare the proposal, are then matched up and can move forward with the co-creation project.

Online participation and archive viewing (form matching)
Participants can watch the pitches online or in the archive, and then submit their proposal to their desired city, town or local business by the deadline via the entry form.
Based on the entry information, the secretariat will present it to local governments and local companies, and a match will be made with a company selected from them. After the match is made, the process will progress to detailed business proposals and interviews with the city, town, village, and local company.

■Benefits for participating companies

By participating, you can build up business experience in your city or town and use it as a proof-of-concept for new business ideas.
In the future, this will also lead to the expansion of our business base, such as creating employment in the local area and supporting employees to return to their hometowns.

Post-matching support
After matching with a city or town, there will be study sessions on creating projects through public-private partnerships and hands-on support for some projects, so you can learn how to proceed in a win-win manner while avoiding the pitfalls of public-private partnerships. Don't worry if this is your first time working on a project with a city or town.

Real and online matching
Through pitching, you can meet municipalities in Niigata Prefecture that are interested in solving problems. The first round of screening only requires the submission of a form that can be filled out in a few minutes, so you can make proposals to various municipalities without having to create a proposal document. In addition, we will also hold face-to-face matching meetings, which allows for a more speedy implementation.

Business PR
Niigata Prefecture will actively promote the project through results presentations and articles, etc. Companies can also promote their projects by participating in Niigata Prefecture's "Challenge Niigata."

Various subsidies are available for locating in Niigata Prefecture
If you are establishing or expanding a new office in Niigata Prefecture, you can take advantage of the prefecture's subsidy system (partial subsidy for initial investment costs when opening an office, office rent, salary expenses, etc.).
Please check the Niigata Prefecture website for details.
https://www.pref.niigata.lg.jp/sec/sangyoritchi/hojoseido.html

■ Past matching cases
In fiscal 2024, we received many proposals from companies regarding nine local issues in nine cities and towns, which led to matching.
Number of applicants: 58
・Number of proposals: 150 proposals
・Number of matches: 77

Of these, 77 cases have led to matching, leading to the creation of budget projects for the following year, collaborative implementation of demonstration projects, and the conclusion of collaboration agreements, leading to the resolution of regional issues through co-creation.

<Matching examples>
Niigata City x SKIDAY
Live video streaming to promote the attractions of Sakata Lagoon, including the flight of swans and the sunset.
[Trial introduction/business consideration]

Niigata City x Dynamic Map Platform Axyz
Eliminate dependency on individual skills Increase profitability potential through field provision
[Field provision and demonstration project implementation]

Tsubame City x Japan trip
Verification of the effectiveness of initiatives aimed at supporting the independence of elderly people and preventing their condition from worsening
[Next year's business budget]

Tagami Town x Niigata Sake Sales
Branding the town using "bamboo" - Attracting inbound tourists and improving tourism's profitability -
[Business Consideration]

Sado City x TOPPAN Edge
A project to preserve and brand the Senmaida rice fields that developed alongside the Sado Island gold mine
[Demonstration project implementation/project review]

Kamo City x Niigata Sake Sales
Creating new value through Le Rectier product development
[Introducing local producers and businesses and implementing collaborative projects]

Yahiko Village x AlbaLink
Vacant house restoration, vacant house matching
[Partnership agreement and collaborative project implementation]

Kariwa Village x Canon Imaging Systems
Regional co-creation x software Smart counting at events
[Field provision and demonstration project implementation]

■ Inquiries
Challenge Niigata Office (Socialups Inc.)
Contact form

◾️Organizer and operator
Organized by: Niigata Prefecture

Operated by: Socialups Inc., Television Niigata Network Corporation

Challenge Niigata will be implemented as a "new business attraction promotion project in 2025 focused on solving regional issues in Niigata Prefecture."

Venue