Hoshino (U.S.A.) Inc. Welcomes Jill R. Cohen as General Counsel and Vice President of Administration

Hoshino (U.S.A.) Inc. (“Hoshino”) is pleased to announce the hire of Jill R. Cohen, Esq. to the newly-created role of General Counsel and vice president of Administration. Hoshino is a wholly owned subsidiary of the privately held Hoshino Gakki Co., Ltd., manufacturer of Ibanez guitars and Tama drums, and headquartered in Nagoya, Japan.

Cohen joins Hoshino from the law firm Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC (f/k/a Sterns & Weinroth, P.C.) (“Eckert”), where she was a Partner.  A seasoned attorney, Cohen spent the last 12 years of her career at Eckert’s Princeton, New Jersey office, and previously practiced law at the international law firms of Nixon Peabody LLP (New York, NY) and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP (Princeton, NJ).

As General Counsel, Cohen will oversee Hoshino’s diverse legal needs.  Additionally, several of Hoshino’s operational divisions will report directly to Cohen in her Vice President of Administration role.

“Few people outside of Japan know more about our business than Jill, who has served as our trusted outside counsel for many years.  I’m looking forward to continuing to partner with Jill in her new role inside Hoshino, and know I will be able to rely on Jill’s judgment to be my ‘right arm’,” said President and Chief Executive Officer, Shogo Hayashi.  Hayashi further noted, “Hoshino recently celebrated the milestone of 50 years of business in the American music market. Looking forward to the next 50 years, bringing Jill into the fold of our internal team will enable Hoshino to continue to reach its strategic objectives.”

“I’m thrilled to join Hoshino for so many reasons,” said Cohen.  “When Shogo and Kimihide “Ken” Hoshino hired me, Shogo remarked, ‘fundamentally, we are in the business of selling joy through music.’  My natural response was, ‘where do I sign?’ Working with Shogo and the entire Hoshino team for many years has been a true joy and pleasure, and I am delighted to now have the opportunity to devote my full professional energies to this company.”