I mainly buy products in Shibuya Tokyu and Shinjuku Isetan.
Those department stores are still quiet, compared to ‘ Before Corona.’ Yet I see some Chinese buyers who speak Japanese very fluently. They seem to be residents in Tokyo, so not many tourist yet.
Whatever the reason is, Japan COVID situation did not get worse. The Government of Japan has decided to accept foreign travelers of short-time stay now.
I reckon Japan will accept tourists in general soon.
I observed one Chinese buyer who was buying lots of SUQQU eyelash curlers. Do they sell SUQQU eyelash curlers in China very well? It is about 20USD. There may be some secrets in marketing. I need to learn how to sell it)
I don’t think I am good at advertising a product. I take a picture and post it to instagram and online shop.
The other thing is that I don’t do makeup so it is hard to know what people want.
So I talk to shops and Kumano brush makers, and get as much information as possible.
Mostly importantly, I value your feedback. Thank you)
Yesterday, I visited some brands who was displaying holiday collections.
I received interesting feedback to my blog from my clients yesterday. I wrote about people sitting next to me at cafe.
I like people watching, especially over coffee.
( I guess my concentration is low.)
I love doing so overseas, as everything is new and people behave differently.
I spent six months as an exchange student in Helsinki. I made some Finnish friends and they took me to a coffee shop after school. Almost every day, we went to cafe and watched people on the street.
To me, that was so interesting as I was able to ask my Finnish friends many questions.
I wish I could do that again in Helsinki.
Haruki Murakami, a novelist, says that when he writes a novel, he goes abroad. He can concentrate on writing outside Japan.
Once, he went to Greece to write. He still wants to eat Greek steak from time to time very badly.
I am not sure if my Finnish coffee is equivalent of Murakami’s Greek steak, but that cafe scene makes me relaxed.
I received three orders for a set my client introduced to her freinds. It is a set of Kihitsu.
Sokoho goat and Kolinsky
Maybe it was made more than five years and now on sale at 30,000 yen. Older hair is said to be better.
They can customize brushes. That is unique as a fude maker.
They say the business is small, and they try to cope with customer needs.
You can contact them directly or you can use me) Please let me know.
It is difficult to write a blog every day. You see I don’t write a blog daily even though I want to.
I find it easier to write every day than to write e.g. weekly. It is easier if I make it a rule.
I haven’t come to this stage yet.
I try, and I try to write when I find a chance.
I tried to write a blog at cafe last night.
Two groups sat next to me in turn.
Though I tried not to listen, some words were heard, lol.
The first one was a business group.
An old guy, seemingly an eyeshadow manufacturer, was asking a lady, who seems to be a seller, for her opinion.
She put several eyeshadows and was telling him her opinions. And she was happily telling him that she had recently gotten married.
She was saying to him,
her husband is a Spanish. He is 195cm tall. He is a lawyer. He asked her father first for his permission, not to her. (the old guy said, ‘wow really?”) He left Japan without any decision, but later they met in London. Now they are married in Japan.
The second group are two ladies. One lady was asking the other for her opinion on how she could have her boyfriend propose to her. She and her boyfriend live together. She was not happy that it took long for him to make a decision.
It was a strategy session, lol.
I came back home and did some search. I thought I could write something as a blog.
I found some numbers. In Japan, 24 % of men at 50 years old have never got married. (14% for women)
Kihitsu has some inventory of fu-pa01 at 5000 yen now.
After it gets out of stock, Kihitsu is planning to continue to order fu-pa 01 from Koyudo. But, with hair getting expensive, the fupa 01 with saikoho this time, will be more than 10,000 yen.
I told Kihitsu that the 10,000 yen fupa 01 would be expensive if the same handle is used.
Kihitsu’s image of new fupa01 is fuwafuwa, but with the current fupa 14 handle, with a flat bottom.
I had several requests to get fuwafuwa but it is currently out of stock.
Would you like a new fupa01 with fuwafuwa handle at more than 10,000 yen?
I chatted with Chikuhodo. They will have limited sets in mid November.
They don’t call them Christmas sets or Noel, rather ‘limited.’ So they can continue to sell those limited sets as long as they are in stock.
This is Evergreen set of Hakuhodo.
I will keep you updated.
Speaking of limited, I have recently sold many ‘old’ products of Kihitsu made by Koyudo.
What Kihitsu does is that they change a little (color or handle shape or logo) to Koyudo products and sell as Kihtisu brand.
Sometimes more expensive, sometimes less expensive. Kihitsu can choose what they like as it is own product.
Kihitsu Fupa01 is 5000yen while Koyudo one was 5520 yen. Kihitsu Fupa13P is 3800 yen while Koyudo one is 5040 yen.
These are old stock but Kihitsu keeps the prices the same and did not raise them. Old hair is generally better.
Kihitsu CEO, Nakashima-san, seems to be enjoying selling brushes purely. Of course, it is business so money is important but he puts client satisfaction first.
I feel old Japan from him. I respect it, and it will benefit him in a long term.
Speaking of old or new,
he and I lived in different decades so our lifestyles are different.
This is me, and I don’t try to generalize here.
I have noticed one thing about him :
I don’t watch TV at all, while he does a lot.
Well, I used to watch baseball of Hiroshima Carp, my home team, on TV. This year I stopped watching baseball even when my team is on TV.
I only check the results, especially rookie players, as they will be main player in years to come. ( I have given up Hiroshima Carp this year and next LOL)
I watched TV long when I was a kid, but with internet, my TV time has been decreasing. It is almost zero now.
I heard from a friend that TV has a screen to search a program of YouTube in Thailand or VietNam. I reckon that most of your countries have a choice between internet or TV.
Japanese TV only airs the same channels. It hasn’t been changed.
I suspect Japanese TV companies try to protect their vested interests.
One example of ‘old’ Japan.
Old vs New
Maybe TV vs Internet
For young generations in Japan, TV will be only a device by which you watch youtube (or netflix whatever )content. I think your countries might have developed this trend more. Japan is late.
I can get information as much as I like on the web while TV sends viewers information selected by TV produces. We cannot select information on TV. TV selects and controls information for viewers.
It is a problem.
We can select politicians but we can’t select TV producers. I have been watching TV-selected information for a long time since I was a kid.
This issue, with internet at home, is getting exposed to many Japanese.
Now, It is my humble protest to TV stations or the vest interests not to watch TV.
It is in a square shape, the first time in Kumano history.
Kihtisu wants to put a French name as they did to their previous brushes.
I told them that my clients would prefer kanji (喜筆）name or product name in Japanese.
These brushes will be made by Koyudo as usual, with goat hair.
Please let me know if you prefer Kanji, Hiragana or English or French etc.
It would be interesting to know.
Fupa01 is now out of stock, but Kihitsu will ask Koyodo to produce it.
It will take a month or so. I will keep you updated.
I wonder if you prefer 喜筆 to Kihitsu (please see the picture above) .
The handle is darker than the Koyudo fupa01.
Do you think this color is fine ?
Other brushes:
I was informed by Koyumo,
the cheek brushes of Gradation, Pearl White and Pearl Pink are now out of stock.
They will be back but take a few months.
(the middle one is a cheek brush of Pearl Pink )
——
Today,
I want to write about my experience when I broke my limitation.
Please skip if not interested, it is totally unrelated to brushes.
Many people study hard or focus on sports and do their best at some point of their life.
That is good.
I didn’t do much till I began to work.
I tried to find how easily or efficiently I could live through school.
I avoided studying long hours.
When I was at elementary school, there were mountains and a river in my town near Hiroshima City – just played there, right after school till a crow cried. (Japanese expression to describe ‘getting dark’)
When I was at a junior high school, I studied hard but it was only several months.
When I was at a high school, I did not study.
When I was at university, I studied only to an extent that I was able to graduate.
On graduating from a university, I wanted to work for a company where I would have an opportunity to work internationally.
I remember I applied to following companies.
Canon
YKK
Alpine
Nippon Express
Makita
And some more that I don’t remember.
Born and raised in Hiroshima, I wanted to work for a company in Tokyo or Hiroshima, but Hiroshima has only Mazda. I was not really interested in cars, LOL.
Makita is in Nagoya, where I have never been.
My choice was either Canon or YKK or Alpine.
I don’t remember how but I ended up in Canon.
At Canon, I chose to work for accounting.
I thought I could work more effectively in accounting, and that I could get a skillset I wanted quickly.
The same way of thinking as before. Avoiding hard work.
The first year was very different from what I had thought.
I was overwhelmed by the amount of work as a rookie.
Canon, though big and multinational, was very Japanese.
Good or bad, Canon ‘educated’ me in a Japanese way. They gave me lots of training, which helped me understand the company.
By the name of OJT, On the Job Training, I worked ‘hard.’
I checked all accounting entries for the main office. There were 3000 to 4000 accounting entries montly, which I needed to check and file.
I heard CPA stands for ‘cut, paste and attach.’ LOL. It was the job I did.
There are lots of positives, though.
I haven’t studied booking keeping so I took a corresponding course. With job experiences, I found it quite interesting. I got to understand accounting.
I liked accounting very much!
Another thing is that I learned that I was able to work hard, LOL.
It was the first time in my life.
I worked from 8am to the last train (12 at night) in Shinjuku.
During the closing seasons, I slept at the office. CFO had a nice sofa and I slept there. I needed to wake up before he came.
I was always wondering why only me…
It was only me working at 12am in the 23rd floor in the middle of Shinjuku.
After several months, I got used to it and learned how to finish my job in a short time.
The second year was much easier.
This experience made me a person who wasn’t surprised at the amount of works. After that, I got many other jobs, but I always looked back the first year, and was able to believe that I could do.
I have an opinion that the amount of work needs to be allocated fairly.
Even with this experience, I am opposed to the Japanese way.
On a personal level, though, it was my first time to work to my capacity and break it. That way, work life after that becomes something I can handle.
My way of thinking is not very Japanese, and I don’t think it is good to give one person more jobs than others.
But, on a personal level, I appreciated it very much.
I went to a book last night after I ate a ‘hot cake’ in a family restaurant.
It is called Royal Host, which has big space to work in.
Coffee was not good, the hot cake is good)
It has been long since I visited a bookstore last time. I found many books interesting though I am not sure if I go there to buy books.
Amazon books are too convenient for me to go to a bookstore, and many bookstores in Japan are out of business. A bookstore in my neighbor is now a Docomo (mobile company) shop.
Even big ones have a problem.
Time changed when ‘You’ve Got Mail’ was filmed in 1998.
Yet I see some children sit on the floor and read a picture book with their mothers.
The Bookstore industry may need to change what they sell from a book to entertainment.
Speaking of Amazon, do you buy Japanese brushes at Amazon or eBay?
I am curious.
I haven’t sold products neither at Amazon or eBay.
I know many Japanese sell ‘Japan’ products there.
Kihitsu CEO mailed me pictures of some old inventory. I want to share here.
The price and hair information will be mailed later.
I talked to Kihitsu on how it would work for them.
If you get access to the site, they will lead to each brush maker where you can buy brushes at discount.
I am not sure if they send overseas. I guess some do, some don’t.
I want to tell you about the Kihitsu case :
There will be ‘outlet’ brushes that will be sold at 20% discount at the Kihitsu web site. In addition, there are brushes that were engraved but were cancelled.
Kihitsu coordinate with wedding planners and sell brushes for weddings, where their brushes are gifted to guests.
Guests’ names are engraved in advance, but some guests cancel their participation. That is how engraved brushes are left in the warehouse.
Most are engraved in Japanese, so maybe you don’t care? Well, I know some of you understand Japanese so it may bother you.
I asked what kinds of brushes were. He said that those were heart brushes.
I guess those brush hairs are goat/PBT, so many are not interested but FYI.
I went to Isetan today around 6:30 PM, busy time. The food sections was busy, but makeup sections are not.
I visited Shaquda, Laduree and Decorte.
Thank you for reading and I will write more tomorrow!
Those Kihitsu brands are made by Koyudo, so they have the same quality.
Prices are sometimes the same, sometimes different.
Kihitsu can take the liberty of setting the prices of Kihitsu products because those brushes are sold as ‘Kihitsu.’
I see some people collect ‘Koyudo Collection’ brushes and prefer Koyudo brands, but the qualities are the same.
——
Now Koyudo discontinued the fupa series and some of BP series.
Kihitsu has some inventory of own fupa and BP’s.
For example, Kihitsu still has Fupa01. It is the same hair with a dark pink handle.
Fupa14
Some brushes are sold only as Koyudo.
‘Kumamon’ is a Kumamoto symbol, and it is like Kitty chan
(not a comparable with Kitty chan, but in the same manner that it is a protected name by patent law, so the Koyudo name can only printed to a brush, not a Kihitsu logo)
I don’t spend more than one hour gym, rather I go there every day.
If it is a hard exercise, I will end up with going once or twice a week. Eventually, I don’t get to go to gym at all. So I have decided to make it short and simple. This has been working well for me so far.
Then, I went to a dentist for cleaning teeth after three months. Obviously, two months of lockdown made it difficult to go there.
By the way, we have (too) many dentists in Japan or Tokyo. Therefore, it is a hard industry to survive, and dentists have become so gentle, LOL.
When I was a kid in a small town in Hiroshima, there were very very few dentists so that it was hard to choose a good one or I was not able to choose….
Another hard one is a taxi driver. They are very nice compared to a decade ago.
Anyway, my dentist has a son studying in USA, and I spent time on talking with him about his son. He has just left Japan, so I asked how the airport was.
Empty, he said.
His son is playing golf at university, and I think it very helpful to get him immersed into a different culture. Something in common.
Then I went to body piercing shop in Shinjuku. It was in Alta, in front of Shinjuku Station.
Then I visited Isetan to buy the following products.
IPSA
This liquid foundations is the most popular one, a shop told me.
12000 yen
Celvoke
I asked if one of the eyeshadow palette color is the same as one small eyeshadow.
NARS
Then went to Shibuya SUQQU.
It sounds like many trips I made , but actually with subway it was easy.
From Shibuya to Shinjuku, it takes only 10 minutes.
It is 40C in some places in Japan, and I feel I am in sauna….
I received many messages to congratulate on my brushes. Thank you very much!
I want to write the background why I have own products in this blog.
It is normal for business to buy many brushes upfront and sell them till the stock gets zero. Many retailers do this type of business.
I chose not to do so and I have been doing business of buying and selling products only when requested by clients. This is no-inventory business.
It takes time and I sometimes lose opportunities to sell more as I don’t have a stock.
It is, though, risky to keep an inventory as it puts pressure on cash. It also takes time to sell all products or it is not unusual to have many products left in the warehouse (well, maybe a warehouse is not needed for brushes)
As a small start-up business, I wanted to begin small, which allows me to fail or try many times. It is not avoidable to fail when we begin business.
Failure is nature of business.
One win, and nine loses. That is a low winning ratio, but it is how business is.
This time, I decided to have my own products. My current business is to buy many kinds of products, from brushes to makeup, clothes, chocolate … That has been fun, and I will continue to do so because that service can be unique.
But it takes time, and the profits are not good for time spent.
I have come to think it important to have ‘my products’ that will support my business in a long run.
I have been thinking about these products:
White Canadian squirrel
Red Canadian squirrel
Yakusugi handles
Rare products like P-FO.
I want to sell those products, but the hair is so scarce that I need to wait.
So, my brushes are made by Kyureido, which makes some high-end Japanese brands. I trust their qualities, so it is a good start.
Thank you for reading!
Toshiya
These are pictures of ADDICTION eyeshadows, Decorte face powder in December and Guerlain limited lip cases.
It is August and it seems summer has arrived in Japan.
It was 30C today, and I expect it to begin to be hot from this week.
With many rainy days, I hope summer days are not as many as usual.
There will be many limited makeup products in August.
I came to Shibuya to buy SUQQU.
As most of them are limited, I can only buy them a little by little though a shop makes it easy to buy them. I appreciate their flexibility.
SUQQU is a Kanebo company, belonging to the same company as RMK.
SUQQU is one of Japanese brands who are selling in Europe. They are aggressive internationally.
I heard there are some shops in London.
RMK’s director was Rumiko, who moved to Amplitude.
Amplitude is a POLA company, and THREE and Amplitude belong to the same group.
Once Laduree shop person told me that Amplitude skincare must be good as Rumiko is a director.
SUQQU Blush compact
SUQQU eyeshadow 133
After SUQQU, I went to Estee Lauder.
They said that people made a long line to buy SUQQU in the morning.
I was asked if I wanted an Estee Lauder lipstick to be engraved. So I stopped buying them and decided to ask if my clients wanted them to be engraved or not.
It is nice service. Dior has the same service too.
The lip color on the left is called ‘Konkatsu pink.’
They said that some Japanese girls come to buy ‘ I want a konkatsu lip.’
‘Konkatsu’ literally means ‘marriage seeking activity.’ A recently invented word in Japan.
I visited SUQQU at 2:30 PM to avoid a rush, but still it was crowded.
I was asked to sit in a seat where people get a face massage.
It was quiet and private space I enjoyed in center of a busy shop.
I felt good, LOL
Another news is that I started my own brush.
I asked Kyureido to make them.
Kyureido makes SUQQU and some other big brands, so I hope you will like them.
Well, some of you have bought eyeshadows, but this time I have a cheek brush.
In the future, I want a powder brush, but a little step by step.
I managed to buy Lunasol Isetan limited for my clients.
Before I visited Isetan, I called Hankyu Osaka to make sure to get sufficient number of products, but it was sold out..
So I hurried to Shinjuku as I thought I would be able to get a few from Hankyu.
Limited products are tricky as they put the maximum number per product.
It is important to be nice to a shop (or buy many products lol) to have them remember me. Especially a shop manager who can decide.
Regular appearances are important)
I was relieved! It is so hard to tell people I am not able to get it. Most people are understanding, but they make a research, spending time and money.
I usually check with a shop in advance, but sometimes it is sold out more quickly than I expect.
Please email me if you are interested in the limited one, which is shown in the first picture. 7440 yen
This morning, I called Koyudo to ask them to replace a paper box with a wooden one. The brush was mailed with a paper box. My clients let me know about it.
It was 55000 yen saibikoho, and the picture on the Koyudo web page shows that the box is made of paulownia.
So I asked them to exchange a paper box with a paulownia one.
I will not write the detailed conversations but I was able to get paulownia boxes, LOL.
Thanks very much!
Sorry it is a short blog: I wanted to introduce limited products as they are sold out quickly.
It is summer but still raining. Very rare to have so many rainy days in July.
This is a four day weekend, and I went to Shibuya department stores to visit
Jill Stuart
ADDICTION
Shiseido
CPB
I was surprised to see that there were very few customers at shop, and shop employees seem to be more friendly than usual)
I am often asked questions in instagram DM and emails. I try to answer on my own and with information acquired on the web. And I also ask my clients who have bought those products being asked.
This time, I was asked how B-FD-01(Bisyodo) differs from S5557(Hakuhodo). B-FD-01 has Saikoho goat and S5557 has goat/synthe mix. Both are foundation brushes.
Bunshindo is Kawajiri Brush, which is located next to Kumano. Kawajiri has Koyomo brushes, too. Both Kumano and Kawajiri are located in the middle of Hiroshima prefecture.
By the way, Japan has 47 prefectures, the biggest of which is Tokyo. The second is Kanagawa that has Yokohama. Hiroshima Prefecture has only 2.8 million people, which ranks the 12th. So there are many local (small ) prefectures and small cities. Or you can say that Tokyo is too big for local people.
Bunshindo has Kolinsky hair that was bought 30 years ago. It has been kept well for long, which is good for brush.
In Japanese, 古 means ‘old,’ and is pronounced as ‘Ko.’ You may have realized that Koyomo is 古(Ko)羊毛(Yomo) (Yomo means old goat hair)
Now they use it as a brand name.
The Bunshindo web page ranks goat hair as follows: 古細微光鋒 (Ko Saibikoho)
古細光鋒 (Ko Saikoho)
古粗光鋒 (Ko Sokoho)
There are 2 more hair ranking higher than these hairs.
All have a kanji 古 (means old) so it is old hair that is softer and more expensive.
It is raining again in Tokyo. Looks like it is every day.
Today I want to introduce a product from Bunshindo.
It is Kolinsky, from 30 years ago. They use Kolinsky and Saibikoho mainly for calligraphy and painting brushes.
(Koyomo has goat hair of 30 years ago too)
Bunshindo is located in Kawajiri, the same as Koyomo is.
Kawajiri (a part of Kure City ) and Kumano are next to each other.
It is 5 hours away by super express from Tokyo, and located between Fukuoka and Osaka.
A little explanation about Hiroshima for those new to this area.
Hiroshima population is concentrated on the shore. Hiroshima is the largest city in the prefecture and Fukuyama is the second.
Kumano and Kawajiri are a little south of Hiroshima City so you can cover the area for one or two days.
The northern part has lots of nature and if you visit second time, I recommend you to go to the northern part – you can ski, well not as good as Hokkaido, but good for repeaters.
These are Bunshindo Kolinsky.
This is the first time to buy Bunshindo as it focues on calligraphy and painting.
Other products I want to mention : these are white squirrel cheek brushes only in red handle now.
21000 yen
This is Laduree September.
ADDICTION Fall – ADDICTION will renew their eyeshadows.
I have once asked a Hakuhodo shop manager what was the best about Hakuhodo brushes ?
Her answer was:
‘The best thing is that we don’t have to spend much time on makeup.
People are busy in the morning. ‘
If you can be ready, not spending long on makeup, it will make life easy.
That was what she liked about Hakuhodo most.
People have many reasons to buy Kumano brushes, and I wonder if this is a common idea.
I feel people buy or choose a brush based on a type of hair, type of handle, being rare(limited), a brand, etc.
What do you think ?
I often write about a history of Japanese culture.
With internet on hand, it is so easy to check history of the areas I am interested in.
The other day, I came across the first Samurai from Europe. He was a British. His name was William Adams. He came to Japan in 1600, the year when Edo period began.
After the one-year and 10 months on the ship, he landed Kyushu, near Fukuoka.
He met Ieyasu Tokugawa, the first Shogun of Edo, and was hired as a consultant on Foreign Affairs.
He was then named Miura Anjin after a seaport near Hakone, got married to a Japanese women and had two children.
It was the end of the Warrior Period, and Ieyasu Tokugawa must have thought Miura Anjin could bring a new technology to a war.
Ieyasu liked him very much, and gave Anjin land near Yokohama and Anjin became a Daimyo, a feudal lord. He built ships and traveled to China and Thailand.
He died in 1620, and in 1639 Japan closed the country to the world which lasted till 1854.
He may not have been able to land in Japan if it was later in the century.
In the 16th century, many missionaries came to Japan from Portugal and Spain. Those are times Japanese met Western people.
And the first African, who came with a missionary, became a disciple of Nobunaga Oda, maybe the most talent warrior at that time.
Anjin was the first Samurai and Daimyo, who came from abroad, so he is remembered well among Japanese.
In fact, there is a Ryokan (Japanese type of hotel called Anjin) in Izu and Anjin festival.
Maybe next time you come to Japan and enjoy Onsen, you may be thinking as if you are the first foreign Daimyo.
(Anjin Festival)
I am taking an order for SUQQU August: please let me know if you are interested.
You see many companies: they look like products provided big Kumano brush companies and are sold as own brands.
While I take orders every day, I receive a question daily about brushes and makeup, and it may be interesting to write about it.
Today, I was asked how AB-HC of Bisyodo is compared with J210 Hakuhodo.
Both are goat, and Bisyodo officially says it is Saikoho. I don’t think Hakuhodo has Saikoho now. They just say ‘goat.’ Maybe at Hakuhodo, Saikoho is mixed with other kinds. And they don’t say Saikoho unless it is 100%.
Here is feedback from a client who uses both.
“AB-HC is more fluffy than J210. J210 is a little bit softer than AB-HC. AB-HC can be used more than J210 to parts of face”
Your question is welcome and I will look into it and will share it in my blog if you don’t mind.
I began to go to a sports gym where we need to wear a mask and have our temperature measured at the entrance.
I wonder this type of arrangement will be permanent under this circumstance.
With a mask, I feel I consume more calories, though.
Now restaurants and shops open and operate as usual. It seems that people go out at night as well….
There are still very few tourists in Tokyo. Have you ever been to a quick sushi place?
It is an automated sushi where sushi is carried by a belt conveyor. It is called ‘Kaiten Sushi.’ ‘Kaiten’ means revolving and it is usually a belt conveyor.
Maybe you have been there if you travel to Japan.
One plate usually costs 100 to 200 yen (1 to 2 USD) with 2 nigiri sushi, and I find it very convenient when I am hungry and I don’t have time.
The first Kaiten sushi was opened in 1958 in Osaka, by a person called Shiraishi san. Shiraishi saw a belt conveyor in a beer factory and thought it could help busy employees.
He created a place to eat sushi standing in 1947, and changed it to a belt conveyor style in 1958.
Sushi is regarded expensive food on a special occasion e.g family dinner. So fast food style and sushi waas not a good match, but apparently Kaiten Sushi makes a niche ( or a big ) market now.
There is an ideal speed of a conveyor for a customer to think and decide to take a plate. It is 0.14km/hour, well I don’t know how fast it is…
The sushi place is called ‘Genroku Sushi.’ and now it is VERY big.
This is a good example to create an idea. An idea doesn’t have to be innovative. A good idea is born when you combine exisiting ideas from different industries or fields.
Shiraishi combined sushi with a belt conveyor.
I guess that is what I need to do – combine existing ideas.
I am not able to create completely new brushes as famous makeup artists do. I need to hear what clients say and add those elements to current products.
This is one small step I make now – I will add a cheek brush to Fude Japan.
Tsuyu (rainy season in Japan) has not come to Tokyo yet, but it is raining every day. I wonder which is better, 33C sunny & humid day or rainy day. In July and August, Japan has very little rain except for Typhoon.
This summer will be even more difficulty as people wear a mask.
I have been to Isetan a lot these days. They provide good service, and they have many limited products to Isetan.
(Isetan and Hankyu have many own limited products. )
Besides, fewer people are shopping at Isetan than before, and I can buy products quickly and comfortably.
This is Isetan limited RMK products – Ukiyoe Modern.
Ukiyoe is painting that was very popular during Edo Period (1603-1867). It is made from woodblock prints, so that it was easy to copy the original. People were able to buy them at a reasonable price, and it became popular among people.
(This is a painting by Utamaro)
These are Laduree limited.
Lasting Pressed Powder 4800 yen
Glittering Eye Color 3000 yen
Pressed Cheek N Mini 3600 yen
Please let me know if you are interested in these limited products.
I had a call from Laduree shop manager, who will be on her maternity leave.
That was nice of her, and maybe only second or third time to get a call from shop outside business.
Only one company called me after the ‘stayhome.’ It was Mikimoto, and it really impressed me )
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EMS is not still working. I am talking to DHL and FedEX now. I will try using DHL this week!
Istan Shinjuku is the No.1 department store in the women fashion. Maybe No.1 department store all round in Japan.
Hankyu Umeda has a good reputation but I haven’t been there. Umeda is in Osaka, and it takes almost 3 hours by super express.
I have read that Isetan and Hankyu had the best service. I wrote as the past tense, as some people say it is not true anymore. I can stil see a different between Isetan and others. Isetan employees seem to know products well. They also move and reply quickly.
There are always some exhibits at stairs like this:
(at Isetan stairs)
I had an interesting chat with a shop manager of makeup company.
He is 188cm tall and good looking so he stands out at the makeup floor. He says his father is a Spanish with 2m tall, and that is how he becomes tall. His mother is Japanese.
What he is good at is that he sees me as someone who buys on behalf of others and doesn’t talk a lot about makeup, LOL.
Topics of yesterday was a dog.
He said, ‘he has three dogs.’ Bulldog, Irish Setter and Chihuahua. Very rarely I see an English bulldog in Japan so I asked how much he paid. He said ‘840,000 yen!’ (8000 USD)
I joked to him how good the company paid but still….
He says that he is single and that he doesn’t spend much money on anything else so it was not a difficult decision.
Those dogs with a different shape of mouth need special treatment – French bull, Pug, Bulldog, etc. So he needs to spend more time than on other dogs, but he looks happy)
Hakuhodo has a plastic cover on each brush now so that customers cannot try them now.
