Etape

What Etape does

株式会社Etape (Etape) is a privately held Japanese for-profit company incorporated on 2025-10-29 in Shibuya, Tokyo, with stated capital of ¥1,000,000. It was spun off from the General Incorporated Association Young Carers Association to commercialize the LINE-based SNS consultation service for young carers that the association had operated since 2022. The company's portfolio comprises three offerings: (1) construction and operation of LINE consultation accounts for municipalities targeting young carers, including event management and regional welfare-window coordination; (2) consultant training and研修 services based on the operating practice accumulated since 2022; and (3) planning, production, and sale of manuals supporting SNS consultation. Service delivery relies on a team that includes former young carers, certified social workers, and nationally qualified career consultants.

The underlying technology is the LINE messaging platform, leveraged as the primary channel for both service delivery and direct user acquisition; the proprietary element is the operational know-how and consultant configuration rather than a software product. As of 2026-03, Etape has been publicly awarded its first major prefecture-level contract — Gifu Prefecture's 'Young Carer Support System Development Project' — which integrates LINE consultation with online salons and face-to-face events into a combined municipal support system. The firm markets via its own website (etape.co.jp), Note blog, X (Twitter), and PR Times press releases, and has cumulative operational experience with 10 municipalities and approximately 2,000 LINE friends.

The business model is B2G (business-to-government): managed services revenue from municipal and prefectural contracts for SNS consultation account build-out and operation, supplemented by professional services revenue from consultant training and manual sales. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is determined via contract. The customer base is concentrated in Japanese local governments, with no disclosed enterprise or consumer-side revenue stream. The CEO, Odagiri Asami, is a former young carer and nationally qualified career consultant who previously held corporate sales and HR roles at Rakuten Securities-listed Racoon Holdings and corporate training provider Lone Deal.

Name

Etape

Legal name

株式会社Etape

Website

https://etape.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2025

Operating status

Operating

Short description

株式会社Etape is a Tokyo-based for-profit company that builds, operates, and trains staff for LINE-based SNS consultation services for young carers, selling these managed and training services primarily to Japanese local governments.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social Welfare Counseling Services

NAICS

Social Assistance (624)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Caregiver Registry & Referral Services (HSABAMAA)

Keywords

• Youth counseling services
• Social welfare consulting
• Municipal support services
• Caregiver consultation platform
• Counselor training programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Shibuya, Tokyo

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, Others

Revenue model

1. 自治体向けLINEアカウント構築・運用事業: 地方自治体로부터 SNS相談창구의構築 및 운영을 위탁받아 수익 창출。2022년 이후 10개 자치체에 대한 운영 실적이 있음。
2. 相談員育成・研修事業: SNS相談員の育成・研修サービス及其相關的手冊策劃製作服務。

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

株式会社Etape (Etape Inc.) constructs and operates LINE-based SNS consultation accounts on behalf of Japanese local governments to support young carers (children and youth caring for family members). The service combines LINE consultation with online salons, face-to-face events, and regional coordination with local government case workers. The company also offers consultant training and the creation of custom SNS consultation manuals.

Product overview

Etape offers a service portfolio centered on LINE-based SNS consultation for young carers, with three interconnected offerings: the core SNS consultation service for municipalities, a consultant training program, and a manual creation service. The company spun off from the Young Carers Association and has operated consultation services since 2022, serving approximately 2,000 LINE friends across 10 municipalities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Young Carer SNS Consultation Service (ヤングケアラー向けSNS相談事業) Construction and operation of LINE consultation accounts on behalf of Japanese local governments to support young carers, including related event management and regional coordination with on-the-ground welfare services. Staffed by former young carers, social workers, and career consultants.
• Young Carer Consultant Training Service (ヤングケアラー向け相談員の育成・研修事業) Operational advisory for SNS consultation accounts and training support for counselors based on practitioner experience from operating LINE consultation services for young carers since 2022.
• SNS Consultation Manual Creation Service (SNS相談に関するマニュアルの企画制作のサポート及び販売事業) Custom planning and creation of manuals designed to support consultant training and standardizing SNS consultation operations for organizations working with young carers.

Quantifiable outcome

• 累計10自治体にSNS相談窓口を提供
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• 岐阜県coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 March 2026岐阜県が実施する「ヤングケアラー支援体制構築事業」において受託事業者として採択。LINEを活用した相談窓口の運営を起点に、オンラインサロンや対面イベントを組み合わせた支援体制の構築に取り組む。
• 一般都是社团法人 ヤングケアラー協会 (一般社团法人ヤングケアラー協会)coreStrategic or Co-development Partnerヤングケアラー协会에서 SNS相談사업을 추진してきた 경험을 바탕으로、分社화하여设立。これまでの実績를 계승하면서持続可能な支援体制 구축을 도모하고 있다。

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• LITALICO: Public Japanese company providing social services and vocational support for people with disabilities and developmental concerns. Comparable in operating social welfare businesses with government and individual payors, though focused on disability/education rather than young carers.
• Florence (認定NPO法人フローレンス): Large Japanese NPO operating in childcare, in-home care, and social welfare services with government contracts. Comparable in serving vulnerable children and families under public-procurement frameworks, but at much larger scale and broader scope.

Emerging players

• Welby: Japanese digital health platform that builds patient-engagement and PHR tools often deployed via LINE and other consumer apps. Comparable in the LINE-platform operating model and B2G/B2B digital health delivery to municipalities, though focused on chronic-disease patients rather than youth welfare.
• BOND (NPO法人BONDプロジェクト): Japanese NPO running multi-channel support including online chat for children and young people in difficult circumstances. Comparable in digital youth-counseling methodology and target demographic, though operating as a non-profit.
• Tsudoi NPO (認定NPO法人つどい): Japanese NPO focused specifically on supporting young carers in Japan. Directly comparable mission and target population, though Etape's LINE-based consultation model is a distinct delivery channel relative to in-person and group-based peer support.
• Kids Public (株式会社Kids Public): Japanese digital health company running online pediatric and child health consultation services (including 'Kidsline'/'AskDoctors') delivered through messaging platforms, often to local government and parent audiences. Comparable in delivering SNS-based consultation to families and municipalities.

Direct peers

• General Incorporated Association Young Carers Association (一般社団法人ヤングケアラー協会): The non-profit association from which Etape was spun off and which originally operated the LINE-based young carer consultation service. Directly comparable mission, methodology, and target population, though operating as a non-profit rather than a for-profit B2G vendor.
• Kimi no Ibasho (あなたのいばしょ): Japanese non-profit operating a 24-hour multi-channel (chat, SNS) consultation service for youth in distress. Highly comparable in model — digital, channel-mediated, anonymous, youth-targeted consultation — although covering a broader at-risk population than young carers specifically.
• Childline Japan (チャイルドライン支援センター): National NPO running telephone and chat-based counseling for children and adolescents in Japan. Directly comparable in providing remote, channel-mediated counseling for youth in need, with similar confidentiality and youth-protection obligations.

Regional players

• Asunaro (NPO法人あすなろ): Smaller Japanese NPOs providing youth counseling, after-school support, and child welfare services at a municipal/prefectural level. Comparable in local-government-funded youth welfare delivery model, although typically not running dedicated LINE consultation services.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/odagiri_a

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Etape