Question
My company sent me to Osaka for a three-day vendor meeting. The Japanese sales team kept saying “yoroshiku onegaishimasu” at the end of almost every conversation — after exchanging business cards, wrapping up sessions, even in the elevator. My phrasebook called it “please,” but I wasn’t asking for anything. What does yoroshiku onegaishimasu mean in a business setting?
Answer by Professional Japanese Teacher
よろしくお願いします。
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.
I look forward to working with you.
The “please” translation is what’s confusing you — drop it. In business, yoroshiku onegaishimasu isn’t a request, it’s a relational phrase. You’re acknowledging that a working relationship exists between you and signaling goodwill toward it. That’s why your Osaka colleagues said it after every handshake, meeting, and elevator ride — each moment marked a small handover of trust.
You’ll hear it in four spots: after introducing yourself with a business card, at the close of a meeting, before someone starts a task you’ve handed off, and as the sign-off in business email. A loose English match is “I’m counting on you” or “thanks in advance.”
For business email and any written context, the default is the slightly more polished form:
よろしくお願い致します。
Yoroshiku onegai itashimasu.
I look forward to working with you.
When the recipient is very senior or the situation is unusually formal, you can climb one more rung:
よろしくお願い申し上げます。
Yoroshiku onegai moushiagemasu.
I look forward to working with you. (most formal)