With its white latticed facade, shiny walls of glass and monochrome interior lighting, passers-by could be forgiven for assuming that Wakabayashi Butsugu is a fashion flagship or contemporary interiors store.

Yet the reality is a little different, for the minimal, clean-lined space, which opened in Kyoto last month, belongs to another world entirely — it's home to a generations-old Buddhist altar company dating back to 1830.

Japan may be famed as a nation that excels at consuming. But among the many items worshipped at the modern-day temple of global consumerism — from fashion to technology — it's fair to say that Buddhist altars are normally pretty low on most people's shopping lists.