Success Stories
KADOKAWA Corporation
KADOKAWA Corporation, a leading Japanese publisher and digital content platform, engaged Manao Software to revamp the Thai version of their eBook store—BOOK☆WALKER THAILAND. The goal: to make the platform more appealing and user-friendly for Thai readers, audience to support their digital business expansion in Thailand.
The project focused on redesigning the Web store with part of backend systems to deliver a modern, localized experience.
The Challenge
As with many cross-border collaborations, the BOOK☆WALKER THAILAND project came with its own set of complexities—particularly around challenges of cross-market collaboration.
- Cross-cultural and multilingual communication: Project coordination required support from a dedicated liaison to help facilitate communication between the local team and the Japan-based stakeholders. This ensured clarity and alignment but also introduced an additional step in the communication flow, particularly during technical discussions and decision-making.
- Prioritization and timeline coordination: Under the tough timeline we remained flexible and proactive to keep the project on track and ensure the Thai version launched as planned.
Our Solution
- We started with a focused discovery phase to understand KADOKAWA’s requirements and user goals.
- Developed a completely redesigned web store and part of backend systems using React.js and Node.js, tailored for Thai audiences with clean layouts, simplified navigation, and a dark theme that had impressed KADOKAWA during our initial pitch.
- Worked collaboratively with KADOKAWA’s liaison and BOOK☆WALKER THAILAND local team to bridge communication gaps and manage expectations, proactively clarifying and aligning specifications together whenever additional documentation was needed and additional requirements occurs.
Manao Software provided:
- Initially, Manao Software assembled a full project team to support the design and development phase, consisting of 4 full stack developers, 1 QA engineer, 1 business analyst, 1 UX/UI designer, 1 DevOps engineer, 1 Architect and a project manager. This setup ensured efficient delivery and alignment during the early stages of the project.
- Starting from April 2025, the client opted to streamline the team for the ongoing phase. The project is now supported by a couple of dedicated developers, with part-time contributions from a UX/UI designer and a DevOps engineer to support continuous improvements and new feature rollouts.
Results & Feedback
- On-time Launch: Despite integration and communication hurdles, the redesigned site launched successfully in March 2025.
- KADOKAWA is satisfied that, despite the challenges of the project, the team was able to deliver on schedule and worked on improving the development structure. They are also pleased with the timely responses and troubleshooting provided after the release.
- Ongoing Development: The collaboration is continuing from April 2025, with ongoing work on new Thai-market-specific features and continuous UX improvements.
Key Takeaways
- Client-Centric Design: KADOKAWA selected Manao Software over other vendors due to our strong design capabilities and deep understanding of local user behavior.
- Resilience Through Constraints: Despite communication barriers and some technical limitations, our team delivered a polished product tailored to the Thai audience.
- Growing Partnership: The success of this project has led to deeper collaboration, with work remaining focused on improving current features and supporting evolving needs.
- Teamwork and Agility: Our cross-functional team works seamlessly across borders, adapting quickly to shifting requirements and timelines. This agility allowed us to maintain momentum and consistently deliver high-quality results.
- International support: With proven experience collaborating across cultures and markets, Manao Software demonstrated the ability to localize solutions under an international environment.
“Working with Manao Software has been a smooth and reliable experience. Despite the communication and technical constraints, the team delivered a frontend that truly fits the Thai market. We appreciate their design quality, flexibility, and ability to adapt quickly under pressure. The developers showed solid knowledge of modern frameworks, localization, and performance optimization, which made the rollout efficient. We’re happy with the results and look forward to continuing the collaboration.”
Shinichi Suzuki
