When hearing about KEN Corporation, many people would think of a company leasing luxury residences for non-Japanese.
Since our inception, we have introduced convenient and luxurious living spaces to non-Japanese working for global companies and embassies, providing them with properties and services that have earned a high degree of satisfaction.
Today, however, the KEN Corporation Group is a conglomerate that responds to diversifying needs, providing valuable spaces for our customers not only in the real estate business but also in the cultural, hotel, and solar power generation businesses.
Not only in housing, but also in various other fields, we aim to improve the urban environment and play a role in civic leadership based on the philosophy of "contribution first, profit later”.
KEN Corporation takes great pride in being recommended by its customers, so how has the company progressed over the past 50 years? Today we would like to share our journey with you.
FOUNDING PERIOD|Real Estate for Non-Japanese
Ken Corporation was founded in 1972 by Kensuke Tanaka in a small apartment in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo (relocated to Nishiazabu the following year).
During Japan's period of rapid economic growth, the business was also a path of social contribution that Tanaka began with hope and passion.
Ken Corporation responded to the changing needs of society and soon established itself as a leading luxury real estate brokerage firm. As the business expanded, a sales department was established in 1975.
EXPANSION|Increasing Demand in 1980s
During the economic heyday in Japan, Ken Corporation expanded its market to meet the growing demands of its customers. We established the first branch at Kichijoji, and Office Leasing Dept. in 1985.
In 1986, Residential Property Management Dept. was established, followed by the Planning Department and the Iidabashi Branch (formerly Mejiro Branch) in 1987, and Jiyugaoka Branch in 1988.
As the scale of our business expanded, we developed a system to meet the various needs of our clients living in Japan, and it was during this period that we grew into a comprehensive think tank for high-end real estate.
The company's commitment to providing comfortable and fulfilling real estate services, from detailed information to real estate consulting, remains unchanged to this day.
STABLE GROWTH|Overcome the “BUBBLE Economy Burst”
After the bursting of the bubble economy in the early 1990s, the Japanese economy experienced sluggish growth and deflation was in full swing as the new century began.
KEN Corporation was able to weather the long "setback" of the Japanese economy primarily because it anticipated and prepared for the recession. And our solid business style from before the bubble period has earned us tremendous trust from our clients to this day.
We established Shibuya and Daikanyama Branch (formerly Shimokitazawa Branch) in 1990, Yokohama Branch and Commercial Property Management Dept. in 1994, R.A. Asset
Management Inc. and Ken Rental Estate Investment Advisors Ltd. in 1998, Ginza Bayside Branch(formerly Yaesu and Tokyo Bayside Branch)in 1999.
And in 1997, the head office (company building) was relocated to Nishiazabu, Minato-ku, which is still Ken Corporation's head office building today.
MULTIFICATED MANEGEMENT|Maximizing Corporate Value
From the 2000s to the early 2010s, Ken Corporation has been working to strengthen its optimal group management structure and management capabilities with the aim of maximizing corporate value.
Today, the Ken Corporation Group operates its business in four pillars: real estate, cultural operations, hotel management, and solar power generation.
Each of these pillars was established with the desire to contribute to solving issues facing modern Japan, such as strengthening Tokyo's international competitiveness, establishing a tourism-oriented nation, and global climate conservation.
Cultural Operations
Ken Media Inc. (Formerly Ken Groove Co., Ltd)was established in 2000, and Shibuya Television Co., Ltd. started the business as Ken Corporation Group in 2001.
The Ken Corporation Group provides valuable opportunities and experiences to its customers not only through its real estate business but also through its cultural business.
We have also entered the field of beauty. Premier Beauty and SPA, Ltd. operates 15 domestic and 2 overseas esthetic salons and beauty schools, and also sells its own original brand of beauty products.
Hotel Management
The Ken Corporation Group has owned and operated luxury hotels in Japan and abroad since it began hotel co-operation in the U.S. in the 1980s. Ken Real Estate Lease Ltd.’s hotel division, Premium Hotel Group, was launched in 2015 to develop and operate hotels overseas and in Japan.
Premium Hotel Group currently operates 34 hotels (as of August 2023) under its umbrella, including world-renowned brands such as Hyatt, Hilton, and Sheraton, as well as its own brand, Premium Hotel and Sanraku. Our hotels are uncompromising in the quality of service as well as interior and exterior design.
Through the development and operation of hotels, Ken Corporation Group will provide unique experience value to our customers and contribute to the revitalization of local economies and the realization of a tourism-oriented nation.
Solar Power Generation
Ken Corporation entered the solar power generation business in 2013. Utilizing know-how cultivated in the real estate business, we are constructing and operating our own power plants in Gunma, Tochigi, and Ibaraki prefectures.
Solar power is an environmentally friendly energy source compared to fossil fuels and nuclear power. The development of power plants also contributes to the creation of employment opportunities by utilizing unused land.
Solar power generation, which promotes environmental conservation and contributes to local communities, is positioned as one of Ken Corporation's core businesses.
OUR CHALLENGE | Innovating Customer Satisfaction
In 2013, Shigeru Sato, the second president, took over Ken's identity. In 2022, Sato became Chairman of Ken Corporation and Kengo Nakagawa became the third president. (Please click here to see messages from the chairman and president.)
Today, Ken Corporation and its group companies have over 7,000 properties available for brokerage in the Tokyo metropolitan area. Not only that, we have many luxury hotels in Japan and abroad, and also provide high-end real estate services such as the development of large-scale commercial facilities, hotels, and urban redevelopment.
We are a company of trust, Ken. "Trust" is the cornerstone of our business. We have made social contribution the basis of our management based on the belief that "contribution builds trust”.
We will continue to be a company that provides "satisfaction" to society under the policy of "customer satisfaction first, profit second.