Archive for June, 2009

Eco convenience store opens in Kyoto

An “eco” convenience store has opened inside Kyoto’s city hall building:

It’s claim to “eco” fame is that it does not sell any bottled drinks. Instead, customers must bring their own cups, which they can fill with 250ml of drink for 50 yen. Eco or not, that’s a pretty good deal.

[A note to our American readers: Convenience stores in Japan do not usually sell drinks that customers can fill themselves. There are no Big Gulps or Slurpees at Seven Eleven in Japan.]

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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)

Billy Blanks’ Wedding Ceremony

A few months ago, it was announced that fitness guru Billy Blanks had married a Japanese woman. Here’s a video of their wedding ceremony, which was held several days ago in Osaka:

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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
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Seven Eleven unfairly banned franchise stores from discounting old bentos

Japan’s Fair Trade Commission has instructed Seven Eleven to halt its practice of banning franchise stores from discounting aging food (great news for those of us who would like to pay less for our bentos):

The FTC said the nation’s biggest convenience store chain had unfairly hindered the franchises from selling bento boxed lunches and other food products at lower prices when they were close to their expiration dates.

Under normal practice at Seven-Eleven Japan outlets, franchises have to incur the cost of items not sold.

Some franchises had tried to cut prices to reduce losses–as they are legally entitled to do–but FTC officials said Seven-Eleven Japan had put pressure on them not to. The FTC said the company had even threatened to terminate franchise agreements as a way of bullying the outlets, often run as small businesses, to comply.

Monday’s decision is likely to have a bearing on other convenience store chains, many of which use similar practices to stop discounting, analysts said.

In the above video clip, a franchise that has been engaging in the practice is shown. According to the franchise owners’ books, the revenue from sales has gone up and the cost of old bento disposal has gone down since the change. The owner had received threats from Seven Eleven, who told him they would not allow him to renew his contract because they “don’t need people who sell products at a loss.”

Seven Eleven has announced that it will now shoulder 15% of disposal costs for unsold items, which may be an attempt to convince some franchises that they should continue not discounting old bentos.

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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)

Toyota Prius Hearse

A limousine company has revealed its plan to create hybrid hearses using the Toyota Prius as a base:

They will cost about 7.8 million yen ($80,000) each – Let the “eco” funeral boom begin!

[hat tip to fukumimi]

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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)

Irei no Hi 2009

Memorial services were held in Okinawa today to mark a special date:

On June 23, 1945, organized fighting by the Japanese military in Okinawa ended after nearly three months of fierce battles which turned the area into a grueling battlefield in the final phase of the Pacific War.

Survivors and families of the war victims gathered at the Peace Memorial Park, located in Mabuni hill in the city of Itoman, to remember the fallen who lost their lives during the battle.

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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)

Japanese government to give 100 billion yen bailout to Japan Airlines

An emergency loan from the Japanese government:

Loss-making Japan Airlines (JAL) could receive up to 100bn yen ($1bn; £635m) in state aid, say reports, on condition that the airline’s management improves.

Any loan would be made through state owned Development Bank of Japan (DBJ).

Looks like cutting CEO pay wasn’t enough to help them through their financial problems…

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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)