Tag: Shopping

Street view of Maruzen in Nihonbashi

Nihonbashi: Maruzen & Takashimaya

Back in the United States, I’m one of the owners of Huxley & Hiro, an independent bookstore in Wilmington, Delaware, where I also live. So, I have a vested curiosity in bookstores of all kinds, since it’s crucial for business owners to constantly innovate, pivot, and update their practices. I’m sure I’ll be visiting a lot of bookstores while I’m here in Japan, but I started by seeking out Maruzen, which I had read had a large selection of books in English.

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Sukiyabashi intersection

Little differences, part 2

I am going to have to be a lot more disciplined to make sure that I adequately document my time abroad, but as I need to get to bed after a good (but long) day of classes and other tasks, here are more little differences I’ve noticed, continued from last time…

  • Keep to the left… most of the time. Actually, it’s better to look for directional arrows that will show you which side of the path or stairs to stay on. It’ll also keep you from accidentally colliding with someone coming from the opposite direction.
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Image of Daiso flagship store

Stretching your dollars at Daiso

In the United States, so-called “dollar stores” are often derided for any of a number of reasons–they’re frequently poorly stocked and organized, usually in various states of disarray, often carry merchandise of subpar quality or of dubious origin, and, probably worst of all, are frequently criticized as predatory (or even perhaps dangerous) to rural or impoverished communities.1Conservatives like to call these criticisms “elitist,” arguing that dollar stores provide much-needed retail to people who need it, despite growing evidence that these monolithic companies’ buying power simply cannot be competed with at a micro/local level.

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Footnotes

  • 1
    Conservatives like to call these criticisms “elitist,” arguing that dollar stores provide much-needed retail to people who need it, despite growing evidence that these monolithic companies’ buying power simply cannot be competed with at a micro/local level.