In just over a decade, Mike Harris has gone from pumping petrol in Japan to heading an outdoor adventure company with an annual turnover of $3 million, and the 35-year-old is not finished yet.
Specialising in canyoning and white-water rafting, Canyons Outdoor Adventure employs 50 people in four locations, and further ventures are planned to satisfy the demand for adventure tourism activities from thrillseeking Japanese.
Moving to Japan in 1994 after graduating from the University of Otago, Mr Harris worked in a variety of menial jobs before setting up his own rafting business in the resort town of Minakami, just over an hour's drive from Tokyo, in 2000.
"The river there is a little bit like the Shotover," he said.
Known for its hot springs nestled among snow-capped mountains, the town is now billed as the country's outdoor adventure capital, thanks to Mr Harris and several other New Zealanders. He offers rafting and canyoning while others run downhill mountain biking and bungy jumping operations.
"We are known as the Kiwi cartel," he said.
The global credit crunch was keeping tourists from travelling overseas, but the Japanese adventure tourism industry was largely unaffected, thanks mainly to its client base being made up almost entirely of domestic travellers, he said.
Sales had risen 50% a year for the past five years, and were expected to rise again this year on the back of strong demand by Japanese holidaymakers for adventure activities.
He was considering marketing New Zealand - in particular Queenstown - to his company's growing client base.
Adventure tourism packages tailored for Japanese clients was one possible business option, he said.
The weaker New Zealand dollar made this country an attractive destination for big-spending Japanese tourists eager to travel to the world capital of adventure tourism - Queenstown.
"They love to have fun, and they make the most of their time off."
Researching business opportunities while in New Zealand with his wife and three children, Mr Harris said his ultimate goal was to divide his time between New Zealand and Japan.
"I want to chase the sun."
