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Building Something New Takes More Than an Idea — It Takes Action
Launching a new business requires not just ideas but the courage to act. How do entrepreneurs actually get started, and what does their vision look like? Shuzo Okada, an employee at Mitsubishi Estate, conceived a baby food business aimed at preventing food allergies — driven by a deeply personal experience. After going through an internal business competition and enrolling in the Shido entrepreneurship program, he's now drawing on what he learned in Silicon Valley to pursue a globally minded venture. This article traces his journey and shares his vision for the future.
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Mitsubishi Estate Employee Takes on a Food Allergy Prevention Baby Food Venture
I work at Mitsubishi Estate Home, a housing company, and am currently seconded to Mitsubishi Estate proper, where I work on new housing-related businesses.
The project I joined Shido to develop has nothing to do with housing. It's called "Hatsutabe" — a baby food concept designed to prevent the onset of food allergies.
It started when my child was born. I took paternity leave and threw myself into making baby food from scratch. My child ended up developing an egg allergy from that food I made myself. What struck me was how little guidance exists. You have to figure out how to make baby food on your own — there's no real reliable guide — so I was constantly anxious about whether I was cooking things correctly, getting the quantities right, and so on.
Watching my child suffer because of food I'd made — I kept thinking: "Why is this so difficult?" and "How is there no product out there that solves this?" That was what led me to think about this as a business.
— Food allergies seem pretty far from Mitsubishi Estate's world. How did those two connect?
This is completely rooted in my own personal experience — it has nothing to do with Mitsubishi Estate's existing businesses. But when I came back from parental leave, an internal business competition had just started, and they specifically said "off-the-wall ideas are welcome." So I submitted it without overthinking it.
In the end, Mitsubishi Estate is a real estate developer, and venturing into food and allergies — an entirely different domain — carries too much risk for the company. The conclusion was "this is a difficult one." That's when I thought, "then maybe I can do this on my own," and I applied to Shido.
From Salaryman to Entrepreneur: How Family and Work Experience Led Here
— Did you think about entrepreneurship when you were a student?
Honestly, I was never the entrepreneur type. If anything, I was living the life of a diligent company employee.
But I think two things shaped who I am today.
The first is family influence. My parents wanted me to work at a stable company — but my father actually started his own business, and my grandfather and great-grandfather were also entrepreneurs. Watching them growing up, I always had this sense that "starting a business is pretty cool."
The second was a club experience in university. I was club president, and 30 of my peers told me "we're not following you." That was a gut punch — it made me feel the weight of what it means to lead an organization.
But through that experience, I naturally started thinking about mission and vision, and I discovered how exciting it is when an organization starts to move on its own — when everyone pushes toward a single goal together. I think those two experiences connect directly to who I am now.
— Was there a moment in your career when you started thinking seriously about entrepreneurship?
Not at first. But my career has been a bit unusual — in my 12 years at the company, I've rotated through 13 or 14 departments. At one point I was handling four departments simultaneously.
That constant newness wore down my resistance to the unfamiliar. The turning point was parental leave. I ran into the food allergy problem head-on, and then an internal business competition happened to start the year I came back. I entered, and the world I stepped into was fascinating. I felt something ignite inside me. That's when I gradually started moving.
— Was there a specific moment when you shifted into a serious gear?
It came from an internal conflict. I lost the internal competition twice. I was saying "I want to do this," but I hadn't actually built anything. I hadn't quit my job. Looking at myself in the mirror, I felt a kind of alarm — I genuinely wanted to change, and that's what pushed me to apply to Shido.
Honestly, I don't think I've fully flipped into "entrepreneur mode" yet. But we're all talking now about leaving real traction behind — and I feel like we've made that commitment.
What the Shido Program Opened Up: Bonds with Peers and Business Evolution
— What was your experience in the Shido program?
First, I realized just how narrow the world I'd been living in was.
I was surrounded by people so much further along than me, working with extraordinary dedication. It hit me hard — a completely different world.
I'd been independently studying design thinking before Shido, but there I got to learn it systematically and apply it in real time. I felt like I was learning everything from scratch, and it was completely fresh.
In Silicon Valley, what struck me most was the difference in the sheer volume of action the local entrepreneurs took — and their resolve. I naturally absorbed what I needed without anyone having to tell me.
— The bonds you built with your cohort seem really strong.
The thing I'm most glad about from the Shido program is the connections I made with my peers.
At this stage of life, it's rare to stay up talking about dreams and hopes until midnight. But everyone does. And online, if someone suddenly says "let's talk!" at 11 PM, 10 people show up immediately. That kind of lightness is something special. Having people I can open up to like that — it's genuinely rare.
— Did the business concept change much from when you first pitched it?
The product itself hasn't changed dramatically, but my understanding of the value we're delivering and the customer problem has shifted completely since I applied in September.
At first, I was thinking "reduce the burden on parents," "support with household tasks." But through conversations with many different people, I realized the actual goal is prevention of onset. That was a major turning point for me.
— Have there been struggles once you actually started moving?
When you actually start building an MVP or prototype, things that seemed fine before turn out not to be — problems come out of the woodwork. But going through that firsthand is what makes me feel like we've finally started. I wouldn't call it struggle — I feel a real sense of purpose in it.
"One Action Per Day" — Building Toward an Allergy-Safe Baby Food and a Community
— What are you focusing on next?
Right now, the mindset I'm holding onto is "one action per day." That might sound minimal, but I make sure it happens every single day after I get home. And not just emails — concrete steps like prototype development, MET validation, team building. I set a specific goal and make sure at least one thing advances every day. Doing this creates a cascade of new tasks, so the key is basically keeping myself on the hook and in motion.
On the prototype, a concrete schedule is starting to come into focus. A lot of people want to use it in the fall, so I'd like to start MVP validation and distribution by October or November at the latest. I feel like the real work is only just beginning.
— Any final words?
I have more than enough passion and drive for this baby food business aimed at food allergy prevention. I'm also currently studying for a baby food advisor certification on my own.
But honestly, there's so much I don't know — about finance, about how to move a business forward. I'd genuinely love advice from experienced entrepreneurs who've been through it.
And I'd love to talk with anyone — parents raising children, people dealing with food allergies, or anyone who's just curious. Reach out if you have any interest at all. I'd love for us to work on this problem together.
After Shido: Winner of the People's Choice Award at Rocket Pitch Night Spring 2024.