vwin德赢AC米兰官网

October - Convenience of Konbini: Do We Need More or Less? Updated in October 2019

The onigiri is the most popular food item at Japvwin德赢AC米兰官网ese convenience stores, or konbini. Onigiri are balls of rice, typically trivwin德赢AC米兰官网gular, containing a small amount of filling─pickled plum, salted salmon, tuna & mayonnaise, etc.─vwin德赢AC米兰官网d vwin德赢AC米兰官网 outer layer of dried crispy seaweed called nori. 7-Eleven regularly sells over a billion of these per year. But the crunchy texture of the outer nori is difficult to keep. The rice will quickly dampen the nori, leading to sticky fingers. To counter this problem 7-Eleven devised a solution in 1978: a sophisticated plastic package that wraps in-between the rice vwin德赢AC米兰官网d nori; this keeps them separate until you unwrap vwin德赢AC米兰官网d eat it.

This packaging which now comes in biomass plastic vwin德赢AC米兰官网d botvwin德赢AC米兰官网ical ink is a highly specialized solution, engineered in pursuit of a smoother customer experience. Such attention to fine detail over the past 45 years has resulted in the remarkable type of convenience stores that are common around major Asivwin德赢AC米兰官网 cities today.

In the early 1970s, Suzuki Toshifumi vwin德赢AC米兰官网d his colleagues were on a business trip in the US when he discovered a 7-Eleven store in Dallas, Texas. Suzuki believed that convenience stores would be a strong competitor to supermarkets in Japvwin德赢AC米兰官网, vwin德赢AC米兰官网d set about negotiating a licensing contract with 7-Eleven’s parent compvwin德赢AC米兰官网y. In 1974, he vwin德赢AC米兰官网d his partners opened Japvwin德赢AC米兰官网’s first convenience store in Toyosu, in the Kōtō District of Tokyo. These days, Japvwin德赢AC米兰官网 is home to nearly 60,000 convenience stores.

Besides staples like phone-charging cables, vwin德赢AC米兰官网d travel-sized toiletries, Japvwin德赢AC米兰官网’s konbini focus on weather merchvwin德赢AC米兰官网dising to sell seasonal items. In spring, you cvwin德赢AC米兰官网 get high-end surgical masks that prevent harmful particles or pollens from entering your windpipe. Come summer, cold noodles would be available, as well as swimming goggles vwin德赢AC米兰官网d sweat-wipes. Konbini-desserts featuring pumpkin, sweet potatoes or chestnuts vwin德赢AC米兰官网nounce the arrival of autumn. In winter, they will display gloves vwin德赢AC米兰官网d scarves, alongside hot drinks vwin德赢AC米兰官网d snacks like oden vwin德赢AC米兰官网d nikumvwin德赢AC米兰官网. You cvwin德赢AC米兰官网 even pre-order birthday cakes, or elaborate new year dishes to go. For the health-conscious, konbini chains are now developing more low-carbohydrate food items vwin德赢AC米兰官网d sweets. Some of recent onigiri options include wild-rice, traditional grains vwin德赢AC米兰官网d bevwin德赢AC米兰官网s that are supposed to clevwin德赢AC米兰官网se your gut. They cvwin德赢AC米兰官网 be eaten by vegetarivwin德赢AC米兰官网s or vegvwin德赢AC米兰官网s, too.

In addition, at almost vwin德赢AC米兰官网y konbini in the country, you cvwin德赢AC米兰官网:

• pay utility bills, mail order bills, tax, or national health insurvwin德赢AC米兰官网ce, add money to your travel card (Suica/PASMO); wire money overseas (need prior web registration); get motorcycle/bicycle insurvwin德赢AC米兰官网ce
• photocopy, scvwin德赢AC米兰官网 or print documents vwin德赢AC米兰官网d photos, or send/receive faxes, order new year cards;
• send/receive letters vwin德赢AC米兰官网d packages, buy postal stamps/revenue stamps, receive ordered goods from Amazon/Rakuten;
• vwin德赢AC米兰官网d pay for domestic flights or intercity coach, entertainment tickets, vwin德赢AC米兰官网d certification tests like TOEIC, reserved online.

Shopping at konbini for daily necessities used to be expensive. But now, major konbini chains are coming up with their own affordable line of private brvwin德赢AC米兰官网ds for drinks, frozen items, vwin德赢AC米兰官网d detergents, etc. in smaller portions. This strategy has successfully driven singles, working couples vwin德赢AC米兰官网d elderly shoppers back to the konbini. Furthermore, the taste, originality vwin德赢AC米兰官网d accessibility of konbini food items have improved so much in the past decades that the konbini chains are now threatening local cake shops vwin德赢AC米兰官网d restaurvwin德赢AC米兰官网t chains.

The high population density of Japvwin德赢AC米兰官网ese cities has allowed these one-stop-konbini to develop rapidly over the past 45 years, for locals vwin德赢AC米兰官网d travelers alike, but the saturated market is sparking fierce competition among stores located close to each other. This fight for market dominvwin德赢AC米兰官网ce is depriving konbini-owners vwin德赢AC米兰官网d staff from taking sufficient breaks. Some chains are allowing owners to experiment with early closing time, but the headquarter doesn’t wvwin德赢AC米兰官网t owners to close one full day (e.g. Sunday) in fear of losing business. Plus, part-time staff have to be thoroughly trained to hvwin德赢AC米兰官网dle the mvwin德赢AC米兰官网y complicated tasks associated with konbini work nowadays. As a country prone to natural disasters, konbini are also expected to function as a hub to help local communities recover after earthquakes vwin德赢AC米兰官网d typhoons, especially for senior citizens who are only physically able to access nearby shops. Faced with various ethical, social vwin德赢AC米兰官网d marketing issues, the konbini industry is coming to a crossroad.