The Ugly Fish and the Secret of Creating Value

I watched an NHK documentary recently that left me thinking about value in a way numbers alone never could.

It featured a fish that nobody wants.

Because it feeds on seaweed, its flesh develops a pungent, almost overwhelming flavour. It’s not suited for sashimi, not good grilled, and not considered desirable by chefs or customers. Fishermen often discard it. It is, by all market standards, an ugly fish — unwanted and undervalued.

But one man saw something else.

He didn’t romanticise the fish. He didn’t try to convince diners it was secretly delicious. Instead, he accepted its nature and worked with it. He used the pungency to create a deeply complex fermented fish sauce. And the leftover flesh — instead of wasting it — he sold to a turtle farm as feed.

He didn’t build a grand empire. He didn’t boast about innovation. He simply looked carefully at what others overlooked, and then used patience and craft to unlock value that was already there.

This, I realised, is the essence of value creation in business.

Most people chase the “sashimi-grade” opportunities — the projects, customers, or ideas that are already obviously attractive. Everyone wants them, so the competition is high, the margins thin, and the differentiation minimal. There’s no edge in following taste.

But the real opportunity often lies in the work that looks unappealing upfront. The customer segment nobody is serving. The by-product everyone throws away. The capability that doesn’t shine on the surface but can be repurposed into something meaningful with time and know-how.

The man in the documentary had two advantages that most businesses ignore:

1. Time.

Value does not always appear immediately. Fermentation takes months. Trust takes seasons. Capabilities take years to pay off. If you demand instant results, you will only ever chase what is already priced for perfection.

2. Skill.

Transformation isn’t magic — it’s craft. Turning a disadvantage (a strong smell) into an asset (rich umami) requires understanding, patience, and the willingness to make small improvements repeatedly.

Those two elements — time and skill — are where the real compounding happens.

The lesson is simple:

Don’t fight over what is already beautiful. Look carefully at what others discard, and ask: “Is there something here that time and craft can reveal?”

In business, as in life, most people underestimate the potential of the ugly fish. They focus on what it is today, not what it could become with the right treatment and a bit of patience.

Value isn’t always obvious. But it is often present — quiet, unused, and waiting for someone who knows how to look.

The principle: Value often hides inside what others overlook.

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