We had the good fortune of connecting with Samuel Obara and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Samuel, maybe we can start at the very start – the idea – how did you come up with the idea for your business?
It is a long story, but at 17, I began an internship with Toyota, where I spent the next 13 years being trained in their production system. During this time, I worked in various departments, including the prototype division, R&D, training, production engineering, and planning. For three of those years, I was with the Overseas Production Engineering Division in Toyota City, Japan, and later I was sent to Venezuela to help start a new Toyota plant.

When I left Toyota to pursue a master’s degree in the US, I was surprised by the high level of interest from many companies wanting to learn about the expertise I had collected through those years with Toyota. They sought to improve their productivity, capacity, quality, cost, delivery, service, and other business metrics. Within a year, the demand grew so much through word of mouth that I invited friends and ex-colleagues to join me. This demand kept growing to a point it naturally led me to start a consulting business. This is how Honsha was founded, an operations management consulting firm recognized for its deep roots in the Toyota Production System

What should our readers know about your business?
I was born and raised in São Paulo, Brazil, where my journey started with humble beginnings. When I was eleven, I helped sell vegetables at a street market on weekends. By the time I was twelve, I already had a full-time job at a factory that made plastic buttons for the clothing industry. The factory owners were family friends and gave me the job to help me learn about responsibility, discipline, and the value of work. It was a tough job, but it instilled in me a strong work ethic.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
The list of must see and must do is so long, after more than two decades living in San Diego, I am still discovering the city. But a city tour would definitely include Balboa Park, Seaport Village, La Jolla shores, Coronado Island, Embarcadero, Old Town, USS Midway, Cabrillo Mountain, and some of these places you can spend the entire day exploring. I would block a few days to see San Diego Zoo, Safari Park, Sea World, Legoland and to bike in Pacific Beach. Also, most of these places have plenty of good food options like Fogo de Chao steakhouse in the Gaslamp or Jake’s in Del Mar. If you want more options for great food check out dozens of restaurants in the Gaslamp Quarter or Little Italy. Just 15 minutes from downtown and you can also be in Convoy, Kensington, Kearny Mesa, Mission Bay, etc.. with another hundreds of amazing food options, my favorites are Kura sushi and Raki Raki Ramen, both in Kearny Mesa. If you are up for the drive, and depending on the season, you can do a same day trip to Disneyland, California Adventure, Universal Studios, Hollywood Walk of Fame, Little Tokyo (where the famous Shabu Shabu House is), Temecula Vineyards, Big Bear Mountain and various beaches along PCH (Pacific Coast Highway). And where else in the world can you ski in the mountains in the morning, and surf in the Pacific Ocean in the afternoon?

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I owe much of Honsha’s success to a select group of influential individuals. The company wouldn’t be what it is today without the help and engagement of people I met around 20 years ago, such as Patrick Mueller, Gerson Damiani, Darril Wilburn, Mike Kobashi, and many others. Additionally, Honsha wouldn’t even exist without the generosity of my Toyota colleagues and friends, who always kept their doors open whenever I sought to learn more about specific areas. .

Website: https://www.honsha.org

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sammyobara/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHixSYopYRc

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutSoCal is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.