Kaikai Kiki Announces the Appointment of COO

Kaikai Kiki Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo / Representative: Takashi Murakami), led by Takashi Murakami, announces that Shohei Sasaki, who co-founded CrowdWorks and led its IPO as its Director and CFO, has been appointed COO, effective July 1, 2023.

Since its establishment in 2001, Kaikai Kiki has been producing works by Takashi Murakami and managing artists. Today, in addition to its headquarters in Motoazabu, Kaikai Kiki has a production studio in Miyoshi, Saitama, a cafe and galleries in Nakano Broadway in Tokyo, and an animation studio. The company also has offices in New York and Seattle, making it a global organization with a total staff of over 250 people in Japan and abroad.
With the expansion of Kaikai Kiki’s business and organizational scale, there has been a growing need to strengthen its management base in order to further accelerate its future business development.
Against this backdrop, the company appoints as its COO Shohei Sasaki, who has gained a great deal of management experience at CrowdWorks and other startups.

Shohei Sasaki joined Aeria Inc. (TSE Standard Listing) in 2007, where he was in charge of sourcing, closing, and PMI of various investment and acquisition projects as an accountant, financial manager, and corporate planner. In 2011, he co-founded CrowdWorks, Inc. (TSE Growth Listing), where he led the company’s IPO as CFO and was an active management member in the company’s subsequent organizational and business expansions.
Since then, he has served as a board member of several companies, including AI startups, and has devoted himself to building management foundations and business growth.

I am artist Takashi Murakami, also the president of Kaikai Kiki Co., Ltd. Today, I would like to announce a new appointment that will revolutionize the foundation of Kaikai Kiki.
Mr. Shohei Sasaki will assume the position of COO (Chief Operating Officer) of Kaikai Kiki.
He has a brilliant career as CFO of CrowdWorks, Inc. and has been helping me bring order to the chaos that is Kaikai Kiki since December of last year. He has been graciously assisting me, with a disagreeable temperament, and the tricky company I manage, and his kind personality and sharpness in business operations made me wish someone like him would join our company. Thankfully, I was given the opportunity to welcome him as our COO.
Now that we are aiming to expand the potential field of art, having started the development of NFT art and portable gaming device in 2022, I feel so pleased and excited to think that Mr. Sasaki will be able to help us realize new, achievable projects that could have a great impact on society.
We hope you’ll keep an eye on Kaikai Kiki as we keep refreshing ourselves.