REIKO NAKAMURA, Managing Director, SGK JAPAN / KOREA
Most people move through life noticing boundaries. Some imposed by culture, some by circumstance, some by unspoken expectations. It is easy to let those boundaries quietly define what is possible. And yet, there are those rare individuals who see the same lines not as limits but as markers of possibility. They step carefully, deliberately, and persistently, breaking through glass ceilings and unspoken barriers. They turn challenges into opportunities, skepticism into trust, and setbacks into lessons. Reiko Nakamura, the Managing Director at MARKS JAPAN / KOREA, is one of these rare few.
Reiko was born and raised in Kobe, the vibrant port city of Japan’s Kansai region. Being one of the first Japanese cities to embrace foreign culture, Kobe shaped her worldview with its open and global spirit. When she was ten, her parents divorced, and from then on, her mother raised her on her own. She saw her mom working relentlessly, starting as a bank teller in a world that seldom welcomed women in power and eventually becoming one of the first female managers in her branch, which was groundbreaking back then. Watching her juggle work, study, and parenting without ever losing her warmth or optimism taught Reiko her first lessons in resilience and ambition.
While still in university, she stepped into the media world as a DJ with a cool voice and the quirky fashion that made people take notice. After graduation, she joined a local advertising agency in Kobe, where men still largely ran the show. Japan had only recently introduced its Equal Employment Opportunity Law, and female professionals were still expected to prove themselves twice over. Despite many raised eyebrows, Reiko’s individuality — in thought, style, and spirit — made her stand out. She quickly proved herself and became the agency’s top-performing salesperson. She once pitched to one of the biggest shopping malls in Kobe—after many senior colleagues had failed — and won the account by doing deep research and coming up with fresh, targeted ideas. That breakthrough fuelled a hunger to achieve more. She soon moved from local to national, joining a company that partnered with Panasonic. But she didn’t stop there. She decided to go global. That’s when she joined SCHAWK JAPAN, a global brand production and creative agency, which later on was rebranded as SGK JAPAN.
Bridging the Cultural Gap
Following her early successes in Japanese marketing agencies, Reiko moved to a U.S.-based global branding environment, where the real challenge was adapting to a new cultural approach. Communication, for example, required a complete shift in perspective. In Japan, she had been taught to provide context first and conclusions second. But her American boss back then always wanted a clear “Yes” or “No” upfront, with the reasoning coming later.
The difference wasn’t limited to communication but also the way business was done. “In Japan, we tend to perfect everything before launching — we’re known for being meticulous, even ‘perfectionist.’ In contrast, the American style is more ‘launch now, fix later.’My boss couldn’t understand why things took so long, but I explained that in Japan, once a business relationship begins, it’s often long-lasting and deeply loyal,” shares Reiko.
At first, these approaches felt incompatible. But Reiko learned that both contained strengths. Japanese precision builds trust and loyalty; American speed encourages flexibility and innovation. The real advantage came not from choosing between them, but from combining them — clarity with context, agility with care.
Driving Brand Growth with Speed, Clarity, and Confidence
Reiko has learned that in branding, nothing stays still for long. Consumer behavior shifts with dizzying speed, and success comes not only from reacting in the moment but from anticipating what will matter tomorrow. For her, that is the most compelling part of the work—staying curious, staying open, and shaping possibilities before they take form. That perspective has guided her through change within her own organization.
SGK and SGS & Co. have recently joined together as Propelis, a next-generation global agency built to help brands move forward with more speed, clarity, and confidence. “Together, we bring more than 150 years of combined experience, with 10,000 brilliant people across 30+ countries, partnering with over 2,000 of the world’s leading companies. It’s powerful, and it’s happening right now,” shares Reiko. Under the Propelis umbrella, two of its biggest brands, Marks and SGX, continue to anchor the APAC region—Marks with its focus on creative strategy, digital commerce, experiential marketing, engineering, and content production, and SGX as a global packaging graphics powerhouse.
Turning Skepticism into Trust in a Male-Dominated World
In a male-dominated industry, Reiko frequently encountered bias and skepticism. She recalls walking into a retail industry conference and realizing she was the only woman in a room of over a hundred men in dark suits. It was the kind of moment most people would feel out of place—but Reikodidn’t let it unsettle her. She could feel all eyes on her. But instead of shrinking back, she asked thoughtful questions during the Q&A, and slowly, people began to listen.
The awkward moments didn’t end there. At networking events, she sometimes encountered assumptions that felt absurd, even belittling—like being asked if she was attending in search of a boyfriend. Reiko didn’t ignore it, but she didn’t let it define her either. She laughed, moved on, and let her work speak. Slowly, the skepticism faded, replaced by respect, by trust, by acknowledgment. “I think the key is believing in yourself and backing it up with real effort. Confidence is magnetic, especially when it’s earned,” she asserts.
Empowering People to Bring Their Best Selves to Work
Reiko believes that every person brings something unique to the table. She is honest about her own limitations, knowing she cannot excel at everything. That awareness shapes how she builds her teams: by surrounding herself with people whose strengths complement her own. “When you combine different talents and perspectives, one plus one can become three — or even five!” she says.
Her leadership isn’t about hierarchy or issuing directives from the top. Instead, she focuses on creating an environment where people feel empowered to bring their best selves to work. Some colleagues even say she cares“too much” about the team, but she takes that as a compliment. “Sometimes I get pulled into disagreements between team members, but I remind them: each person has strengths that others don’t. Respecting that diversity is how we grow as a team and as a company. My job is to spot those strengths and help them shine,” she adds.
Blending Work and Life in Joyful Ways
Steering Marks’ Japan and Korea operations come with their own set of challenges. Time zone differences mean late-night calls are inevitable, and managing teams across cultures carries its own emotional weight. It can be exhausting, even for someone as disciplined and driven as Reiko. But she has learned to find ways to recharge. Her secret, she says, is adaptability: she can sleep almost anywhere—on planes, in taxis, even in meeting rooms—so she arrives ready for the next challenge. But what truly restores her energy are the small, joyful moments outside work. She loves hosting friends at home, laughing over silly stories, and simply unwinding. Her husband takes charge of the cooking, and the night often ends in a pile of empty bottles and full hearts. Even some of their best business ideas—and even new connections—have sprung up during these relaxed evenings. For Reiko, balance isn’t about strict separation; it’s about integrating joy, reflection, and human connection into the rhythm of a demanding career. As she puts it, “Work and life can blend in joyful ways.”
A Vision of Smarter, More Human Brands
At Marks, what excites Reiko most these days is the promise of technology. For her, AI is not just a buzzword; it is a way to work smarter. She and her team are not simply using it — they are building it, designing systems that allow both their people and their clients to think faster, see more clearly, and act with confidence. Within the next five years, she envisions Marks to become the global partner of choice for companies that want growth with both creativity and purpose. She sees Japan and Korea as natural places to set that pace. Consumers there are blending online and offline experiences seamlessly and expect interactions that feel effortless yet personal. Meeting those expectations pushes her teams to experiment, to stretch, and to keep asking questions that go beyond the surface. “For me personally, I’m endlessly fascinated by trends. Where are people shopping? What makes them stop, smile, click, or share? How do we take a fleeting moment of interest and turn it into real brand love? That’s the game we play at Marks — and our mission is always to stay one step ahead,” she opines.
At the end of the day, their focus is simple: to help clients bring their brands to market faster, smarter, and in more creative ways — while making sure people truly feel something along the way.
Pearls of Wisdom from Reiko
Reiko often describes being a woman in branding as less of a challenge and more of a superpower. “Most consumers are women, so your daily experiences — shopping, scrolling, chatting — are a goldmine of insight for clients,” she explains.
Her advice is disarmingly simple: say yes. Yes to the roles that feel a little daunting, yes to the projects that stretch you, yes, even when your confidence lags behind your curiosity. Those are the moments that shape leaders. She recalls how, as a teenager, one teacher dismissed her while another chose to believe in her. That early contrast taught her something lasting: not everyone will see your potential, but someone will. “There’s always a space where you can shine—just keep being you and keep showing up. You’re the only one who can write your story,” she concludes.