Rabona

What Rabona does

Rabona (株式会社ラボーナ) is a privately held, Gifu-based web design and creative agency founded in 2004, operating for over 20 years from a multi-floor office in Gifu City, Japan. The company specializes in custom-illustrated, animation-rich website production for small and mid-sized businesses, with a service stack spanning strategic branding, custom website creation (HTML/CSS/JavaScript, WordPress), e-commerce site development (Shopify, MakeShop, BASE, STORES), SEO/SEM, video production, and government subsidy application support. Differentiation rests on in-house hand-drawn illustration, custom character and mascot design, and Adobe Animate-driven parallax and scroll-triggered animation effects that template-based competitors cannot easily replicate.

The business model blends one-time project fees for website builds, managed revenue-share contracts for ongoing e-commerce operation, and recurring SEO/advertising retainers. Customer mix is primarily regional Japanese SMBs across healthcare, tourism, F&B, retail, and light manufacturing, plus selected enterprise logos (Sojitz Logitech, World staffing). The firm has expanded adjacent lines of business including a government-accredited Web Academia vocational training school (launched 2022, housed on the 3rd floor of its office) and an owned consumer product brand, Tsurunoni magnesium massage oil, sold on Rakuten and Amazon. Sub-brands include EC Lab for e-commerce site building and Web Academia for free 6-month training programs accredited by Gifu Prefecture and the national vocational support agency. The August 2023 office relocation to a larger multi-floor facility signals continued investment in physical infrastructure and community presence.

Name

Rabona

Legal name

株式会社ラボーナ

Website

https://rabona.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Rabona is a 20-year-old Gifu-based web design agency specializing in custom-illustrated, animation-rich websites and e-commerce builds for small and mid-sized Japanese businesses, with supplementary branding, SEO, video, and government subsidy support services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Gifu

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Website design and production services: Custom website development for businesses including branding-focused homepage production, e-commerce site setup, and WordPress-based sites. One-time project-based fees.
2. EC site management and revenue-share services: Ongoing operation of e-commerce stores on a performance/revenue-share basis, including product listing, site maintenance, and sales optimization.
3. SEO and SEM/web advertising services: Search engine optimization and web advertising management services provided as ongoing retainer or project engagements.
4. Video and animation production: Video production and YouTube channel management/outsourcing services.
5. Government subsidy application support: Assistance with subsidy applications (IT導入補助金, 岐阜市广告宣伝補助金, etc.) including document preparation and submission support.
6. Web Accademia vocational training school: Free vocational training school ( государственная программа) for web/EC skills operated by the company. Free for participants; government-funded training program.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Rabona is a creative agency in Gifu, Japan that designs and builds websites, creates e-commerce/shopping sites, and provides branding services for client businesses. It operates a dedicated WEB Department for website projects and an EC Department for e-commerce builds, delivering design-driven solutions to local and regional clients.

Product overview

Rabona is a web design and creative agency offering a comprehensive suite of digital services. The core offering consists of website creation, e-commerce development, and branding services, supported by ancillary services including SEO, web advertising, video production, and subsidy application support. The company also operates ウェブアカミア (Web Academia), a vocational training school that teaches Adobe applications, HTML/CSS coding, web direction, and e-commerce skills. Rabona specializes in unique, illustration-heavy designs with animated web experiences, and develops e-commerce stores using major Japanese platforms including Shopify, MakeShop, BASE, STORES, Rakuten, and Yahoo! Shopping.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ウェブアカ (Web Aca): Vocational training school offering free web design, EC, and digital marketing courses. Located on the 3rd floor of Rabona's office building. Operates as a government-approved vocational training program.
• ツルノーニ (Tsurunoni)
• ECラボ

Products and services

• Website Design and Development
• E-Commerce / Shopping Site Creation
• Branding Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Website featured on WebDesignClip design reference site (Sojitz Logitech and Gotohisa design office projects)
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ，独立行政法人高龄・障害・求職者雇用支援機構 (Japan Organization for Vocational Ability, Employment Development and Equal Opportunities) / 岐阜県 (Gifu Prefecture)coreOthers · 12 June 2023Rabona operates a government-funded vocational training school (職業訓練校'ウェブ academIA') in their office building, accredited by Gifu Prefecture and the national employment support agency. The 6-month program is free for participants, funded by government vocational training budgets. This partnership enables Rabona to train future web/EC talent while generating community goodwill.
• WebDesignClipminorOthers · 17 February 2022Rabona's client websites (Sojitz Logitech and Gotohisa Design Office projects) were featured on the WebDesignClip design reference website, which aggregates quality web design examples for industry professionals. This provides third-party validation of Rabona's design quality.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• D2C Inc. TSE-listed Japanese digital advertising and integrated marketing firm with agency operations serving brands across digital media and creative. Comparable as a much larger incumbent operating adjacent digital agency and SEM services overlapping Rabona's web advertising offering.
• transcosmos inc. TSE-listed Japanese digital services major offering EC site construction, digital marketing, and contact-center operations across the same client base (SMB to enterprise). Comparable as a much larger, portfolio-scale peer in EC site production, SEO/SEM, and managed store operations that Rabona also provides.
• Septeni Holdings Co., Ltd. TSE-listed Japanese digital advertising holding company with agency, ad-tech, and digital media operations. Comparable as a much larger incumbent that also runs digital ads, SEO/SEM, and content production for Japanese brands.
• Advance Create Co., Ltd. TSE-listed Japanese advertising agency offering digital ads, creative, and media buying for SMB and enterprise clients. Comparable as a larger incumbent in web advertising, SEM, and creative services that overlap with Rabona's SEM and creative offerings.

Direct peers

• PARTY Inc. Tokyo creative agency offering branding, digital experience, and campaign work for Japanese brands. Comparable peer for a boutique studio combining strategy, custom visual design, and digital execution for SMB and mid-market clients.
• Basic Inc. Japanese creative agency focused on brand strategy, design, and digital content for consumer-facing and SMB clients. Comparable peer in custom illustration-and-identity-led creative work serving Japanese brand clients similar to Rabona's portfolio.
• Allied Architects Inc. Tokyo-based digital creative agency delivering branding, web development, and digital marketing for Japanese and global brands. Direct comparable on boutique creative agency model, multi-disciplinary service line-up, and illustration-led design thinking that Rabona also emphasizes.
• Whatever Co., Ltd. Tokyo-based creative and digital agency producing brand identity, websites, and integrated campaigns. Direct comparable on small-team, design-led agency model serving Japanese brand-builders and SMB clients.

Emerging players

• STUDIO Inc. Japan-founded no-code web design platform (studio.design) that enables SMBs to build branded websites without a custom agency. Comparable as an emerging SaaS substitute competing for the same small-business website creation budget that Rabona services.

Others

• Makeshop (by GMO): Major Japanese EC platform (one of Rabona's listed integrations) used by SMBs to build online stores, sometimes in lieu of an agency. Comparable as an infrastructure/platform layer that substitutes or complements Rabona's EC site construction and managed-store revenue streams.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/rabona888
• Facebookfacebook.com/Rabona.jp

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rabona