Niseko, a ski resort on Japan’s northernmost island of Hokkaido, exists at the intersection of international energy brought by visiting skiers and Japanese tradition.
But this convergence creates friction. Western expectations, Japanese protocols and a hyper-seasonal environment are third-culture problems that require third-culture solutions.
This is where Patrick Ohtani comes in. As chief operating officer of luxury holiday rental management company The Luxe Nomad, he moves between worlds. He was born in Canada to an Irish mother and a Japanese father, raised in the UK, and is 12 years into building his career in the resort.
The Luxe Nomad is Asia-Pacific’s largest luxury holiday rental management company, specialising in high-end, curated ski-in/ski-out chalets, apartments and condominiums in Japan’s premier
Hokkaido destinations, including Niseko, Rusutsu and Furano.
Around 50 per cent of the staff in Niseko are Japanese, while the other half are from other parts of the world to cater to the seasonal resort’s diverse customer base.