In this interview, we spoke to the President of HI-partners Inc., Hiroshi Tsujimura, which runs Ninja-Do: a popular group among foreign tourists for its ninja-samurai shows and ninja experience in Osaka.
Many foreign tourists associate Japan with ‘ninja’, but with so many competitors, what makes this group different from the rest?

First and foremost, the answer lies in the LOCATION!
The shop where the Ninja-Do experience is operated is a one-minute walk from Shin-Imamiya Station on the JR Line and Nankai Line; Dobutsuen-mae Station on the Osaka Metro’s (subway) Midosuji Line and Sakaisuji Line. Shin-Imamiya Station can be reached from Kansai International Airport in 40 minutes without transfers, with USJ (Universal Studios Japan) only 20 minutes away.
Taking advantage of this convenient location, we hope people will stop by here during their Osaka sightseeing trip.

The area is also a magnet for Muslims since mosques are within walking distance of the city. For Muslims, dropping in at a mosque is an important part of their trip abroad.

I used to serve as the executive director of the NPO Kansai Asian Association. This organisation aims to deepen exchanges with Asian countries to promote mutual understanding and friendship, which gave me the chance to get involved with the Consulate-General of Indonesia. Thanks to this, my interest in Indonesia blossomed. I learnt how to engage with Muslims, which I applied to the management of the Ninja-Do.
Another point that differentiates us from other ninja experience providers is that we also offer this service for Muslims.

The ninja experience is available for up to eight people at a time, with a quota of four sessions per day. We also organise group ninja experiences for educational tours, corporations and other groups by visiting the venues.
Since entry restrictions were abolished in October 2022, bookings from foreign tourists have been coming in one after another, to the point where some days are fully booked. Compared to pre-COVID December 2019, we had more bookings in December 2022, so our business performance is already better than pre-COVID. Perhaps this may be partly thanks to the accelerating trend of a weaker yen, which has made travelling to Japan easier.

Most participants in the ninja experience are children and their parents who became interested in ninjas through Japanese anime/manga culture, such as ‘Naruto’ and ‘Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba’. Participants can also walk around nearby tourist attractions, including Tsutenkaku Tower and Shinsekai, while dressed as a ninja.

Our customers, including Muslims, participating in our ninja experience are from countries and regions such as Hong Kong, Singapore, the USA, South Korea, India, Taiwan, Indonesia and Malaysia. I find it fascinating to see how diverse the reactions are, according to where they come from.

Besides hands-on workshops, Ninja-Do also organises ninja shows and experiences at hotels and commercial facilities.
We organise ninja shows not only in Japan but also in other countries– Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia and the UAE –to help promote Japanese culture overseas.

Osaka is set to attract even more global interest as a tourist destination with the upcoming Expo 2025 and the opening of its integrated resort in 2030. With so much to see and do, we are committed to developing Ninja-Do as a part of the Osaka tourism scene.

< Business Profile >
Name: HI-partners Inc.
Head office: 4F Wakaba Bldg, 1-1-18, Taishi, Nishinari Ward, Osaka
Service: Japanese culture business, Inbound support, Multilingual design and translation, Advertising and PR design, Planning, Web design
HI-partners Inc. Corporate Site (Eng)
Ninja-Do Official HP (Eng)
Instagram / ninjado_ninja
Facebook / 忍者堂 Ninja-Do
Twitter / Ninjado_Japan
Podcast / 忍者堂ラヂオ屋敷 (Ninja-Do Radio Yashiki)

Related Article:
Ninja experience with prayer space, English support, VR at Ninja-Do(Osaka)

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