The untold story of the “supporters” driving the vision of the rapidly growing Heralbony

Startup companies that achieve dramatic growth by identifying societal pain points and needs, turning them into business opportunities, and scaling up their operations.
Since startups are generally expected to achieve rapid growth in a short period of time, they must secure the business resources—people, materials, and capital—as quickly as possible.
Therefore, they must drive their business forward by fully utilizing not only internal but also external resources. And sometimes, the insights and experience of employees seconded from other companies can support that growth.

“The BUDDIES” is a series that spotlights Dentsu Inc. employees who serve as these “running partners”—working on secondment at startups, maintaining their Dentsu Inc. employment while fully committing to the business.
In the first installment, we go behind the scenes at “Heralbony,” a company aiming to create a new culture in collaboration with writers with disabilities, to focus on the reality of life for these seconded employees.
We explored what kind of talent is essential for a startup’s growth and what the “Buddy” brought to Heralbony.

*This article is reprinted from a sponsored article by NewsPicks Studios.

The mission at my secondment is “Let your uniqueness shine.”

Heralbony was founded in 2018.
With the mission “Let Your Uniqueness Shine,” the company is a creative firm aiming to transform perceptions of disability and create a new culture.
The founders are twin brothers, Takaya Matsuda and Fumito Matsuda, who have an older brother with autism and severe intellectual disabilities.
Takaya Matsuda, one of the twins and a Co-CEO, says:

“We want to change the image that comes to mind when people hear the word ‘disability.’
These individuals already possess incredible talent (a unique brilliance), and if we can showcase that talent in the right setting—through design, PR, and other means—I believe they can become part of the economy. That’s the hypothesis we’re working on,” says Matsuda.

The company enters into art data licensing agreements with 334 artists with disabilities (as of July 2026)—artists who “shine with unique brilliance”—as equal business partners, and builds its business around their works.
The business is broadly divided into two categories: the “Brand Business,” which sells clothing and accessories designed using the contracted artists’ work, and the “Collaboration Business,” which develops co-creation projects with companies and local governments centered on art.

The company continuously pays contracted artists fair royalties, and the cumulative amount of royalties paid has grown approximately 15-fold over three years (as of August 2024).
Its business model and creativity have been highly acclaimed both domestically and internationally, and in 2025, the company won the “Gold Lion in the Glass category” at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

While things appear to be going smoothly at first glance, Mr. Matsuda also points out challenges.

“There are many hurdles. The challenge I feel most acutely is ‘influence.’
“Currently, while certain people are showing interest, if you ask whether we’ve actually created the society we’re aiming for, we still have a long way to go,” says Matsuda.

While tangible results are beginning to emerge regarding the brand’s reach and business progress, the company’s ultimate goal is to establish a world where “unique” artists are no longer considered unique.
To achieve this, the company must develop both its cultural and business aspects in a more scalable manner.
Currently, the company has attracted talent from various industries who share its vision and passion and are committed to overcoming the challenges at hand—and among them is a surprising figure.

That person is Shota Gennozono, on secondment from Dentsu Inc. He was originally a specialist in OOH (out-of-home and transit advertising) at Dentsu Inc. and had previously had little connection to the art world.
So why did Mr. Gennozono become involved with Heralbony?

“I want to help someone I admire succeed through my involvement.”

Gennozono, who devoted himself to American football for seven years in high school and college, joined Dentsu Inc. in 2012.
After joining the company, he built his career in roles such as OOH media planner. The turning point came when he was selected through an open department-wide recruitment process to be stationed in the United Kingdom.

“Although I was assigned there for OOH work, demand for OOH advertising plummeted due to the lockdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to about half of my local colleagues resigning.
“This experience prompted me to reevaluate the future of the advertising industry, and at the same time, it made me stop and seriously consider, ‘What is it that I’m truly passionate about and can do with all my heart?’” (Mr. Gen Oen)

After a thorough period of self-reflection, what clearly emerged as both her strength and her true passion was “using my presence to help someone I care about succeed.”

After returning to Japan, he was seconded for 3 years and 8 months to “LIVE BOARD,” a digital platform company specializing in outdoor advertising, where he helped the company achieve profitability—a long-cherished goal. Then, in April 2025, he was seconded to Heralbonie.

“I had a strong interest in the startup world, and I came across this company while considering where to go on secondment.
In addition to its mission, there were two charismatic CEOs, employees brimming with energy, and the unparalleled power of the writers.
The more I researched, the more I felt a shock as if I’d been struck by lightning, and I sensed that if I didn’t work at this company, I might regret it for the rest of my life,” said Mr. Gen O.

How to Balance Social Impact and Economic Viability

So, what exactly does she do at Heralbonie?

Ms. Gen Wangyuan took on the role of Sales Planning Manager in the Account Division at Heralbonie.
Her primary role involves leveraging Heralbonie’s assets to manage projects involving collaborations with partner companies.
However, in reality, she takes on a wide range of responsibilities.

For example, he is leveraging his existing relationships to promote initiatives aimed at bringing Heralbony to a wider audience.
One day, Mr. Genouen visited LIVE BOARD, an OOH platform company where he had previously been on secondment.
He was there to attend a meeting regarding an advertising campaign for Heralbony planned by the company, which operates numerous digital signage installations nationwide.
Among the several proposals presented there, the idea that particularly captured Ms. Gen’en’s imagination was to display works by local artists on digital signage in their communities.

“I sense a strong desire among parents—whose children are creating art—to have the local community recognize their children’s talents, especially in cases where creative activities take place within the limited circles and environments of welfare facilities.
That’s precisely why I think a project that collects and showcases works by local artists is a wonderful initiative for Heralbonny,” said Gen Oen.

Another initiative Ms. Gen’ōen undertook to raise awareness of Heralbony was placing an advertisement on a large digital screen at a commercial facility directly connected to Otemachi Station in Tokyo.
The concept involves displaying videos featuring the creative process and works of unique artists in a location frequented by businesspeople and many others.
In addition, she participated in and helped bring to fruition a project to wrap a train with artwork.
Having been involved in OOH work for a long time, he says it’s easy for him to visualize what kind of content should be displayed in which locations.

On the other hand, as he commits himself to Heralbony with a sense of fulfillment, he realizes that the more the business grows, the more challenging the work becomes.

“In the art world, it’s not uncommon for works to take a very long time to complete; some even take five years to finish.
While handling such works, we are also required to work at a tremendous pace in order to grow as a startup.
I find the unique challenges—and the appeal—of Heralbony in balancing the quality and social significance of art with speed and economic efficiency,” says Mr. Gen Oen.

Strengthening Heralbony from a Business Perspective

How do Heralbonie’s members view the changes and achievements since his secondment?
One employee says he gained a new perspective on setting goals with partner companies.

“We had been working with a client company for several years and were thinking about where we should be heading in the future, but we hadn’t really discussed the ‘metrics’ needed to achieve that.
When Mr. Gen Oen joined us, he brought a new perspective on which metrics we should be tracking.”

Another employee said they learned the importance of quantifying the projects they’ve been working on.
“Thanks to Ms. Genouen, we’re now able to make proposals to clients with numerical evidence and persuasiveness—such as the specific marketing effects a given initiative will have.
In that sense, I feel that Heralbony has given us a reliable ‘weapon.’”

Drawing on his experience as an OOH professional who has thoroughly analyzed advertising ROI on the front lines of business, Mr. Gen Ouen himself is said to be highly conscious of the importance of “numbers.”

“While this is a world where intuition is valued, I believe it’s precisely for that reason that it’s important to express what can be quantified in numbers and prove that value. So, for example, we’ve prepared survey packages and introduced measures to quantitatively measure the changes partner companies experience before and after collaborating with Heralbony,” said Gen Ouen.

In this way, Ms. Gen’ōen’s involvement has strengthened relationships with many partner companies, and Heralbony’s brand and presence are steadily expanding.

“With Ms. Gen Ouen on board, our data and persuasiveness have increased, and we’re now able to propose PR as part of our overall package. This is incredibly significant in terms of ‘influence.’
Ms. Gen’ōen is leveraging the insights and network she cultivated at Dentsu Inc. to bring in a variety of projects and initiatives.
We hope to pass on those resources and skills internally so that, going forward, Heralbonie itself will be able to carry out such initiatives.” (Mr. Matsuda)

Becoming the “Number 1” in the “Number 2” World

As she runs from place to place, Ms. Genouen is also realizing the various changes in herself.

“First of all… my style of dress has changed (laughs).
To be honest, I used to dress rather plainly, but I’ve become interested in clothes, and now I wear stylish Heralbony shirts and even tie a scarf.
I’ve probably changed so much from before that it surprises the people around me. I still feel a bit out of place at times, but people tell me, ‘That looks really good.
In addition, my perspective on startups has changed significantly.
I used to have this image of them reveling in a glamorous world or being driven by the ambition to go public, but in reality, the inner workings are down-to-earth in the best sense of the word.
They approach every opportunity right in front of them with the mindset that it might never come around again—as a once-in-a-lifetime chance—and give it their absolute all.
“The level of focus and energy they bring to every single opportunity is truly amazing,” (Mr. Gen Oen)

Speaking of changes, Mr. Matsuda still remembers these words from Mr. Gen Oen.

“What made me happy was when, a while after we joined forces, Mr. Gen Oen said this to me:
‘At first, I intended to stand between Dentsu Inc. and Heralbonie and manage things so that both sides would benefit, but now I’m fully committed to Heralbonie,’ he said,” (Mr. Matsuda)

Mr. Gen Oen threw himself into a growing startup from Dentsu Inc., literally becoming one with the company and dedicating everything he had cultivated to it.
Once again, one wonders: where does that passion come from?

“Just looking at Heralbonie’s two CEOs, I realize there are truly amazing people in the world—visionaries who draw others in and forge ahead.
But rather than aiming to be one of them, I want to become an ‘indispensable person’ by supporting them.
I want people to say, ‘That person’s success is only possible because that other person is right by their side.’ Becoming the ‘Number 1 in the world of Number 2s’—that is the source of my passion.” (Ms. Gen’ōen)

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Written by Akihiro Tajima
Design: Kimie Tanaka
Editor: Ryoya Kaita
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Watch the YouTube videos for The BUDDIES #1 here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPZawI2duro