The East Japan Railway Company’s redevelopment of its properties into commercial and community spaces has always supported Japanese design, whether it’s been through the inclusion of select boutiques within minimalls or the impressive 2k540 Aki-Oka Artisan street of craft stores and studios.
Its latest project, Hibiya Okuroji, which opened last month, is no exception. The long arcade of eateries and stores beneath the red-brick arches of a viaduct spanning Tokyo’s Yurakucho and Shimbashi stations includes Niigata 100, a store filled with household items and foods all produced in Niigata Prefecture.
This is the first Niigata 100 store outside of its own prefecture, and it’s part of the Niigata Industrial Creation Organization’s Hyakunen-Monogatari initiative, which has been supporting research and development of locally made products since 2003. Despite the Tokyo store’s compact floorspace, it promotes a comprehensive range of regional crafts, from individual artisan woodwork and ceramics to factory-manufactured metalware and glassware.