Kay Makishi
curious creator, connector, community builder, and capitalist
Kay Makishi
curious creator, connector, community builder, and capitalist
My Life Chapters
Chapter 1: EXPLORE
Chapter 2: ENDEAVOR
Chapter 2: ENDEAVOR
Age 0 - 30. This chapter I explore who I am, what the world is, and how I want to make a positive impact in chapter two. Worked in private, public, and nonprofit sectors. Had tons of side hustles including as a TV host for a Singaporean travel show. Tried to try everything. UN projects, security think tanks, traveled 50 countries, learned
Age 0 - 30. This chapter I explore who I am, what the world is, and how I want to make a positive impact in chapter two. Worked in private, public, and nonprofit sectors. Had tons of side hustles including as a TV host for a Singaporean travel show. Tried to try everything. UN projects, security think tanks, traveled 50 countries, learned about my heritage, got my masters in economics (fully funded from Oxford University), funded by European Union Entrepreneurs Program to scale EU manufacturers to US/Japan and so on. I learned that I am a curious creator, builder, and connector.
Chapter 2: ENDEAVOR
Chapter 2: ENDEAVOR
Chapter 2: ENDEAVOR
Age 30 - 60. This chapter I endeavor to use entrepreneurship as a force for good. My mantra is Pursue True Happiness - a lifelong journey of serving others through your gift to our world. My gift is turning ideas into actions into results. Specifically, by building companies with good, kind, smart, ambitious, and fun people. I thrive in t
Age 30 - 60. This chapter I endeavor to use entrepreneurship as a force for good. My mantra is Pursue True Happiness - a lifelong journey of serving others through your gift to our world. My gift is turning ideas into actions into results. Specifically, by building companies with good, kind, smart, ambitious, and fun people. I thrive in the 0 to 1 process. Creating something from nothing. The theme in this chapter is to make others happy through good product with great people. Good for people, planet, profits and to serve my purpose by adding value to startup ecosystems in the US and Japan.
Chapter 3: EDUCATE
Chapter 2: ENDEAVOR
Chapter 3: EDUCATE
Age 60 - 100+. This chapter I educate and institutionally invest full-time. I hope to build a university known as the "Harvard B School" of Asia on Okinawa Japan around fundamental new ways of doing business based on chapter two's designing, developing, and doing. Standardizing what I call the 4P's: people, planet, profits and purpose and
Age 60 - 100+. This chapter I educate and institutionally invest full-time. I hope to build a university known as the "Harvard B School" of Asia on Okinawa Japan around fundamental new ways of doing business based on chapter two's designing, developing, and doing. Standardizing what I call the 4P's: people, planet, profits and purpose and evolving it to the next level. I also aim to create a family office which also funds an "Adventure Fund" to encourage high school graduates to take a gap year funding their adventures around the world to learn about humanity because I wish I had that. Maybe write a book called A Woman's Search for Meaning and Gratitude & Guts released on my 100th birthday :)
Things I've Learned
I sold $5,000 of paper cranes door-to-door at 13
At 13, I was selected for the People-to-People Student Ambassador program to England, Ireland and Wales. My parents didn't hand me $5000 for the program, so I had to get creative. I hired my little sister, folded paper cranes, stapled them to a piece of colored construction paper with a note about me, my motivations and program details on it. I knocked on doors and sold them for $5 a piece until I hit my $5000 goal.
[Photo: me on left, sister on right].
I learned about work ethic.
I sold $50,000 of knives at 17
At 17, I sold knives using in-home demonstrations and lead referrals. I ranked as the #1 sales representative in my Pennsylvania office. At 18, I started my own office in New Jersey recruiting, training and managing a sales force of 60 representatives from 18 to 80 years old. I also hired 3 back office receptionists, negotiated office space and lived out of the basement of a lawyer couple's home I found on Craigslist. I worked 16 hour days eating PB&J sandwiches I had in my desk drawer in between interviewing recruits. I was the #1 recruiter in the Northeast region. This is how I paid for undergrad. This was one of the most influential experiences in my life.
I learned that mindset is everything.
I helped generate $500,000 in revenue at 19
At 19, I interned at a digital advertising agency called Digitas (acquired for $1.3 billion by Publicis) through the American Association of Advertising Agencies' competitive Multicultural Advertising Internship Program. Out of the MAIP national cohort, I received the Multicultural Excellence Award for helping to generate $500,000 in additional revenue for a client's social media campaign strategy pitch.
I learned about pitching to corporate clients.
I called every MAKISHI in the Peruvian Yellow Pages at 22.
I am first generation American. My parents are both from Okinawa, Japan. I was first in my family to be born in the US (Hershey, Pennsylvania) and raised in Amish County PA. Identity always intrigued me. I was selected as an Okinawan Government Scholar (沖縄県費留学生) and spent 1 year in Okinawa to learn about my cultural roots.
In Okinawa, I discovered a 300-page book of all my ancestors' names since the 17th century and family records going back to the 15th century. The book was organized by regions of the world to where my ancestors and relatives immigrated to over the centuries.
I read about relatives immigrating to Peru before World War Two. I was curious. So, went to Peru to find them.
I published an article in the local Peruvian-Japanese newspaper, called every MAKISHI in Lima's public telephone book and... found them!
(Before Ryukyu Kingdom, there was the Sanzan Period (literally the "Three Mountain Period") where Okinawa was ruled by there kings. I have family records that the Makishi line split from King of Sannan. (or "King of the Southern Mountains"). I'm curious to flesh out more of my personal history. I've marked this as a retirement project. For now, I am focused on helping to create future history!)
I learned about my heritage.
I led a 20-person team from 7 countries at 24
At 24, I served as Chair for AJET National Council, consisting of 20 members across Japan, to build a national community of Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program participants comprised of 4000+ professionals from 40 countries. Elected by my peers, I served as the liaison between JET participants and the Japanese central government. Our team also created partnerships with Japanese corporations and sold educational books to JET participants to raise funds for our various projects.
I learned about leadership and culture building.
I cycled 5,000 miles across 5 countries for 5 months at 26
At 26, I solo cycled the Silk Road from China to Uzbekistan for the Silk Peace Cycle. My tag line was 5000 Miles for 5000 Smiles. I aimed to collect photos of 5000 persons smiling holding a whiteboard with the word PEACE written in each person's native language to bridge local and global community together. I am a contributor to the UNESCO Silk Road project.
I learned resiliency.
I sold $30,000+ of dresses in 30 days at 30
At 30, I product designed a dress called Little Bamboo Dress with 5 pockets that packs into itself. I invented it from a personal frustration of clothing options for my carry-on after traveling to over 50 countries. I sourced material (bamboo rayon hence the dress name), established relationships with manufacturers, and managed the entire supply chain and go-to-market process including primary market research and all logistic and transportation management.
I learned to appreciate the process.
I served on a 3 person C-Suite team for a VC-backed Silicon Valley tech startup at 33
At 33, I grew a B2B SaaS startup backed by Sequoia, Index, Pear, Alumni Ventures, Gaingels and other leading investors. Prior, I was first hire at Nayya, now $500+ million backed by ICONIQ (Mark Zuckerberg's family office) and others. Hear what Nayya's CEO has to say about me. At BeyondTrucks, I was the first sales hire so did everything from cold calls to conferences to closing to cleaning up the floors. I drove around rural Tennessee knocking on doors of trucking businesses, I've handed out popsicles at golf outings, and I've even dressed up as a blowup unicorn at a trade show. (Facts). I hired, trained, and managed the sales, marketing, and partnership teams from zero, aligning strategy and KPIs to achieve $XX million in pipeline with a 34% end to end close rate, together.
I learned that to achieve success only work with and hire good, kind, smart, ambitious values-aligned people.
I started advising LP investments into VC funds in 2024
In 2024, I became VP at Lupoff/Stevens Family Office, a NYC based single family office started by former hedge fund manager Peter Lupoff (Millennium, Third Avenue, Tiburon), advising investments into early stage impact oriented VC funds and startups. Having been a former founder, operator, and VC helping Oxonian Ventures with their Fund 3 fundraise/investments amongst other VC roles, allows me a unique perspective as an LP allocator now.
I'm learning about global asset management, innovations around derisking investments, alpha opportunities, and gaps in the private/venture market.