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April 19, 2024
 

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Shigemi Kotaka
For Shigemi Kotaka's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2011
Made up just right for job hunt
As college students search for work in today's tough job market, young women face the additional challenge of learning how to apply makeup correctly to appear professional in interviews.
JAPAN
Jan 11, 2011
Japanese service winning customers in Europe
Japanese enterprises are well known for their meticulous and cordial customer service, and now some are finding success in Europe by incorporating these standards in their business strategies.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 5, 2010
Job transfers grow less onerous for women
Among the perennial problems facing Japan's married working women, one is particularly sticky — whether to continue working when their husbands are transferred by their companies to assignments elsewhere.
JAPAN
Jul 22, 2010
Law gives dads time for parenting
Japan has taken another step to reverse its declining birthrate, as a law revision extending parental leave took effect last month with the hopes of encouraging fathers to play a larger role in raising children.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 19, 2009
For many, no final resting place
About 40 percent of Tokyo residents who responded to a metro government questionnaire say they have no burial plot and their hometown is just too far away to consider as a final resting place.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 27, 2009
Low-priced clothing next big thing
Supermarkets and department stores are churning out low-priced clothing, actively taking part in the planning and production phases to become manufacturing retailers.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 20, 2009
Rural footpaths are increasingly no longer the roads less traveled
People are taking to regional rural roads and footpaths, making maps and posting signs.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 10, 2009
Networking, not gender law, gives businesswomen needed leg up
A decade after a law was passed aimed at ensuring equality of the sexes, women are still a small minority among Japan's top business executives, prompting some to turn to networking.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2009
Market for pet funerals expands as owners opt for burials
The market for pet funerals is expanding as owners increasingly opt for cremations and entombing of the ashes, but the lack of a legal framework is causing trouble over crematoriums and funeral service fees.
JAPAN
Apr 28, 2009
Homeowners think small when renovating
Some elderly people and retired baby boomers whose offspring have moved away are hard at work reducing the size of their homes to a more manageable level.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 9, 2008
Companies developing systems to rehire their former employees
Companies are increasingly looking to bring back former employees who quit for family reasons or because of a spouse's transfer.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 4, 2008
Street corner fish stores declining rapidly
Fresh fish stores on street corners are disappearing because supermarkets are taking over their turf and convenience is denting demand for the traditional staple.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 21, 2007
United we stand: Airline alliances set to battle for travelers
The global aviation industry faces increased competition among the three biggest airline groupings now that both of Japan's leading carriers are part of the alliances.
BUSINESS
Jul 12, 2005
Firms' underused employee lodges get new lease
Developers are looking to undertake management of money-losing luxury resort lodges that companies own and operate for their employees.
BUSINESS
Apr 5, 2005
CO2 emissions spur conservation blitz
As carbon dioxide emissions from households continue to increase, many businesses have begun putting up Internet Web sites that advise consumers how to save energy for free.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2004
Japanese both young and old falling under the spell of magic
After a lull of about 10 years, Japan is once again seeing a boom in magic, with department stores reporting sharp rises in sales of paraphernalia for the sleight of hand.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 18, 2004
Japanese firms wake up to wonders of fair trade
Japanese corporations have begun to sell fair trade-certified products in a belated effort to catch up with an international movement that has existed for nearly two decades.
BUSINESS
Oct 7, 2004
Slump has silver lining for door-to-door vendors
Due largely to sluggish consumption and the graying of society, door-to-door vendors are staging a nationwide comeback.
BUSINESS
Aug 25, 2004
Variable-rate products gaining traction
With long-term interest rates starting to show upward movement buoyed by the economic recovery, new financial products with variable rates are drawing attention from individual investors.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 17, 2004
Nation's flower industry wilts amid deflation, overproduction
Japan's flower industry flourished in the 1990s during the global gardening boom but has been stalled by deflation and overproduction, bringing about a collapse of prices.
No link to Nankai Trough quake seen after temblor in Shikoku
Satoshi Harada from the Meteorological Agency explains about the magnitude 6.6 earthquake during a news conference early Thursday.
Thousands evacuated as Indonesia volcano erupts
Indonesia's Mount Ruang spews hot lava and smoke as seen from Sitaro, North Sulawesi, on Wednesday.
Why hasn't Japan moved to prop up the weak yen?
Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Snake on a train: Discovery of serpent delays Tokyo-Nagoya shinkansen
A Tokaido shinkansen. It is unclear whether the snake was venomous or how it ended up on the train, and there was no injury or panic among passengers.
In a first, Japan doctors sue Google over negative reviews on firm's map app
One of the lawyers representing a group of doctors suing Google told a news conference that the main purpose of the lawsuit is not to seek compensation but instead to raise awareness over various problems with the Google Maps system.
'House of the Owl' brings Hollywood values to Japanese TV
In the new Disney+ series “House of the Owl,” Min Tanaka (left) plays a powerful political fixer, or “kuromaku,” who has a troubled relationship with his adult children, particularly his idealistic son, played by Mackenyu.
Benefits and risks: AUKUS looks to take gamble on Japan
U.S. President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and British leader Rishi Sunak deliver remarks on the AUKUS partnership, after a trilateral meeting, at Naval Base Point Loma in San Diego in March last year.
Kyoto’s demon night parade lives to haunt another day
In a Kyoto long past, the "hyakki yagyō" (100 demon night parade) haunted a sleepy corner of Kyoto. Now, one enterprising monster enthusiast has won a small batttle to keep the march alive.
U.S. deploys midrange missile system in Indo-Pacific for first time
A U.S. Army Mid-Range Capability (MRC) Launcher arrives as part of the capability’s first deployment into theater on Northern Luzon, Philippines, April 8.
Unpacking the chaotic by-election in a scandal-hit Tokyo district
People listen to a campaign speech in Tokyo's Koto Ward on Tuesday.

Podcast

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Historically, kabuki was considered the entertainment of the merchant and peasant classes, a far cry from how it is regarded today.
For Japan's oldest kabuki theater, the show must go on
By Lance Henderstein

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Prize winner Maki Imoto catches light with glass
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