Cocoo and Dream Arts Announce Capital and Business Alliance to Accelerate Enterprise DX

Cocoo Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Yusuke Irie; hereinafter "Cocoo"), a company supporting societal digital transformation (DX) through its "Talent × Digital" business, announces that it has entered into a capital and business alliance agreement with Dream Arts Co., Ltd. (Tokyo HQ: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; Hiroshima HQ: Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture; President & CEO: Takaki Yamamoto; hereinafter "Dream Arts"), including a third-party allocation of new shares with Dream Arts as the subscriber.

Under this alliance, Cocoo’s DX talent will acquire specialized knowledge of Dream Arts’ no-code development platform for large enterprises, "SmartDB® (Smart DB)," and provide hands-on support services to companies facing challenges in system implementation and adoption.

By combining the strengths of both companies, we aim to strongly support corporate DX initiatives.

Background and Objectives of the Business Alliance

In Japan, the majority of IT talent is concentrated in vendor companies, leading to structural challenges where user companies face excessive burdens on their information systems departments, causing digitalization of frontline operations to be deprioritized.

Cocoo has addressed this issue by building practical experience and talent development expertise through DX talent services such as "Excel Joshi (Excel Girls)," providing on-site support and guidance to corporate teams.

Meanwhile, Dream Arts, with its mission to "contribute to the development of people, organizations, and society filled with the joy of co-creation," offers the no-code development platform "SmartDB®," enabling frontline teams to fully digitize business processes. With over 500,000 users and a 51.9% market share in the large enterprise segment (※1), Dream Arts is driving the "democratization of digital" in major corporations.

"SmartDB®" enables full digitization of business processes and enterprise-wide productivity improvements by starting in specific departments and expanding horizontally across other divisions. However, many companies lack sufficient IT talent within operational departments to lead system configuration and internal rollout, hindering smooth adoption and expansion.

Through this capital and business alliance, the two companies will combine their strengths to launch a dedicated support service, tentatively named "Smart DB Girls," specializing in SmartDB®. Over the next three years from the start of the alliance, 100 professionals will be trained to obtain SmartDB® certification. These "Smart DB Girls" will be stationed within Dream Arts’ client companies, providing end-to-end support from initial SmartDB® setup and no-code system development to cross-departmental deployment.

This initiative will accelerate enterprise-wide adoption of SmartDB®, contributing to corporate DX and the broader democratization of digital tools. Additionally, the alliance will strengthen the relationship between the two companies and establish a stable foundation for long-term collaboration in service development and talent cultivation.

※1: Based on Techno Systems Research's "2025 SaaS Workflow Market Vendor Share Survey"

Details of the Alliance (Service Offerings)

By combining Cocoo’s expertise in talent development and hands-on support from services like "Excel Joshi" with Dream Arts’ operational know-how of SmartDB®, the alliance will cultivate DX talent specialized in SmartDB® and launch the "Smart DB Girls" support service.

<Support Offerings>

- Practical support through structured skills: Delivering hands-on assistance tailored to frontline needs, from business process analysis to no-code app development, workflow design, and system maintenance.

- Phased support and adoption expansion: Providing continuous guidance from initial setup for new clients to cross-departmental expansion and ongoing process improvements for existing customers, promoting enterprise-wide adoption of SmartDB®. This significantly reduces the burden on IT departments while enabling rapid, frontline-led efficiency gains.

- High-quality support by SmartDB® certified professionals: Training 100 certified professionals over three years, ensuring consistent, high-standard support delivered by dedicated experts stationed within client organizations.

Executive Comments on the Alliance

・Takaki Yamamoto, President & CEO, Dream Arts Co., Ltd.

We are truly delighted to announce our capital and business alliance with Cocoo Co., Ltd.

At Dream Arts, we advocate for the "democratization of digital," aiming to create a world where frontline employees—not just IT departments—can transform their own workflows. The key to this transformation lies in empowering people on the ground to lead change.

Cocoo has created numerous opportunities for diverse talent to thrive through digital tools, notably with "Excel Joshi," and has built a solid track record of on-site, hands-on support. We are confident that combining Cocoo’s talent development expertise with our SmartDB® platform will cultivate change-makers within client organizations and significantly advance enterprise-wide DX.

Through our jointly developed "Smart DB Girls," we will powerfully support the democratization of digital in large enterprises and contribute to improving productivity across Japanese corporations. We look forward with great enthusiasm to our collaborative journey with Cocoo.

・Yusuke Irie, CEO, Cocoo Co., Ltd.

Our company is driven by the purpose of "creating a society where diversity and inclusion are the norm through the power of digital," aiming to revitalize Japan. Achieving this vision requires support from many stakeholders and partners who share our mission. We are deeply grateful that Dream Arts has resonated with and embraced our vision. Their concept of "digital democratization" deeply aligns with our belief that it offers a fundamental solution to Japan’s structural IT talent shortage, enabling frontline-led DX. By leveraging our expertise from "Excel Joshi," we are confident that our newly cultivated "Smart DB Girls," stationed within client companies to provide close, hands-on support, will maximize the value of SmartDB® and strongly accelerate digital democratization in large enterprises. Building on our robust partnership with Dream Arts, we will fully commit to enhancing productivity and advancing DX across Japanese corporations.

About Excel Joshi

"Excel Joshi" is a premium administrative service provided by Cocoo’s full-time employees—"Excel Girls"—who are highly skilled in Excel and macros. They offer multiple IT-driven solutions, including BI, VBA, and RPA, tailored to clients’ specific challenges.

▼ Excel Joshi Website: https://exceljoshi.cocoo.co.jp/

About the Business Digitization Cloud "SmartDB®"

"SmartDB®" is the leading business digitization cloud platform in the large enterprise market. It enables no-code development from department-specific workflows to enterprise-wide processes. Centered on workflow automation and web database functionality, it offers rich features, flexible external system integration, granular permission controls, and meets high security requirements. Widely adopted by major enterprises, it supports comprehensive digital transformation.