01. Snowboarding lets me be myself

Why does snowboarding have the power to bring out the real Kohey?

It was his childhood friend Taiga who first got Kohey on a snowboard.

In junior high, they each focused on different school clubs and stepped away from snowboarding for a while.

When he started riding again in college, his passion took off fast.

What drew him to snowboarding was the thrill of being out in nature.

For the usually reserved Kohey, snowboarding seems to unlock his wild instincts.

02. Canada opened up the world of snowboarding

When he started university, Kohey began to want to learn English and try working abroad.

To experience life overseas before starting his career, he decided to go on a working holiday in his fourth year of university.

His one condition for choosing a destination: he had to be able to snowboard.

So he ended up living in Canada for a year.

To ride in better conditions, Kohey moved from Toronto to Banff.

Banff was full of Australians who'd come for the snowboarding, and with almost no other Japanese people around, he says he struggled.

Even so, his time in Canada greatly broadened his view of snowboarding.

Heading into the mountains alone, in vast nature, beyond the barriers of language and culture.

That experience had a big impact on Kohey's drive and values.

03. An outdoor job that makes people's days off richer

After graduating, Kohey joined a specialized trading company, but the harsh working conditions left him stressed, and he decided to quit.

He says a feeling of unease from conversations with his boss and coworkers back then has stayed with him.

So next, he wanted a job where he could add value to people's time off.

He started working at Forest Adventure, an adventure park set in a lush forest.

Unlike typical playgrounds for kids, it's a place where adults can play all out, just like kids.

He wanted to enrich not just the time people spent at the park, but their whole day off, before and after.

He'd recommend spots nearby and share things they'd never have known if they hadn't talked to him.

Kohey found great fulfillment in a job where he could see people enjoying their days off right in front of him.

04. Changes in my own life

It's been five years since Lehmans was founded.

In that time, Kohey's life has changed a lot too.

He got married, had a child, and started a family.

His job changed too.

From Forest Adventure in the lush forest to the concrete jungle of Tokyo.

Today he works in sales, pitching applications that help companies work more efficiently.

Kohey, who once helped people enjoy their days off in the outdoors, is now juggling work and family and enjoying limited days off himself.

Placed in a completely different environment, he faces unfamiliar work every day.

Through new discoveries and experiences, he says he can feel himself growing.

When he gets home, his wife and child are there.

They talk about their day and share easy conversation.

On weekends, they go to the park or join local events, spending time together as a family.

For Kohey, this change has without a doubt been a happy one.

On the other hand, the time he has just for himself has shrunk dramatically.

Snowboarding, surfing, wakeboarding.

It's become hard to throw himself into his hobbies as often as he used to.

That's when Kohey says he realized something for the first time.

There's work, there's family, there are things you want to protect.

Even if you still want to play just as much, your free time is limited.

That doesn't mean you've lost anything.

That's exactly why he now understands the value of limited days off better than before.

The time he can spend on Lehmans is also more limited than before.

Even so, after putting his child to bed or during his commute, he helps out with social media and brand activities.

He joins demo days too, making day trips within his tight schedule.

He values the time he gets to hear honest feedback from people who've actually ridden the boards, and to talk snowboarding face to face, more than ever.

Through that feedback, he's come to understand much better what customers want and where the snowboard industry is heading.

Those insights feed not only into Lehman Stick's product development and communications, but also into his day job as a salesman working on clients' challenges.

05. What sales taught me about understanding people

Today, Kohey pitches applications that help companies work more efficiently.

In sales, you can't solve someone's problem just by explaining a product's features at them.

What situation are they in, what's bothering them, and what do they want to achieve?

You have to understand that background and then figure out the best approach.

That way of thinking applies to Lehmans too.

Hear people's voices directly at demo days and on social media, add our own experience, and reflect it in our products and services.

The experience of learning to entertain people in the outdoors.

The experience of facing clients' challenges as a salesman.

And the experience of having a family and less free time.

All of it connects to what Kohey does at Lehmans today.

06. Designing more people's days off through Lehmans

The Lehmans concept is "making working people's days off richer."

Kohey doesn't see Lehmans as just a brand that makes and sells snowboards.

Over a lifetime, we go through all kinds of changes: work, marriage, raising kids, changing jobs.

You can't always spend as much time as you'd like on the things you love.

Kohey himself has come to feel that reality strongly since starting a family and working as a company employee.

That's why he believes there's value only Lehmans, as it is today, can deliver.

We don't have pro riders everyone looks up to or epic films like the big brands do.

But we understand how it feels to work like everyone else and head to the mountains on your limited days off.

We listen to customers at demo days and on social media, add our own real experience, and put it into our products and services.

Himself as a completely ordinary office worker.

Himself as a father with a family.

And himself as a member of Lehman Stick.

Bringing all of that together, even with limited time, he wants to help make someone's life just a little richer.

That's what Kohey — who has gone from outdoor evangelist to salesman — wants to make happen with Lehmans today.