National / Media | BIG IN JAPAN Jan 16, 2021
Stories that cater to the soul, the intellect and the stomach
by Mark Schreiber
Examining the challenges facing Soka Gakkai, a new teen comic book hero and coffee franchises nationwide amid the pandemic.
Food & Drink Jan 10, 2021
A ‘new wind is blowing’ for Japan’s coffee culture
by Spencer Cohen and Tommaso Barbetta
Japan’s kissaten and coffee shops are no strangers to social change. COVID-19 is pushing both shops and their customers into digital-driven habits.
Business / Corporate Jul 31, 2020
Japan cafe Pronto to debut in Taiwan at Yokohama Hakkeijima aquarium
The island will be Pronto's third foreign market after China and Singapore.
Business / Social Issues Jun 24, 2020
Starbucks Coffee Japan Ltd. said Wednesday it will open its first store in the country with sign language ability for hearing impaired customers. ...
Business May 26, 2020
Starbucks to restart in-store services in Tokyo; travel agencies to resume in June
Starbucks Coffee Japan Ltd. said Tuesday it will restart the use of seats in stages starting Wednesday in Tokyo and four other prefectures where the coronavirus state of emergency was lifted Monday. At present, the company only offers takeout services at some 500 outlets in ...
Business May 19, 2020
Starbucks to reopen 850 outlets in Japan as coronavirus measures eased
Starbucks Coffee Japan Ltd. said Tuesday it will restart operations at some 850 outlets in Japan that had been shut to prevent a further spread of the new coronavirus. At Starbucks shops in eight of the country's 47 prefectures still subject to the government's coronavirus ...
Business Jan 29, 2020
Starbucks shuts half of its China stores amid virus outbreak
by Leslie Patton
Starbucks Corp. has closed more than half of its mainland China locations because of a viral outbreak that has disrupted lives in the coffee chain's most important growth market. The news cast gloom over what otherwise would have been an upbeat earnings report. Same-store sales, ...
Food & Drink Nov 2, 2019
Portals of the past: Peering into Tokyo's traditional kissaten coffee shops
by Russell Thomas
"Sorry, we're full," I hear someone say as I open the door to Ladrio, a pre-eminent kissaten (traditional coffee shop) situated in a tumbledown alley in Tokyo's Jimbocho neighborhood. Ladrio is located in a tumbledown alley in Tokyo's Jimbocho neighborhood. | RIKO MONMA I'm naturally disappointed ...
National Aug 21, 2019
Nightlife spots off Japan's beaten tourist track seek to lure in foreign visitors
by Masumi Koizumi
At around 10 p.m. on a Thursday in early August, foot traffic at a dining and drinking district only one stop from Tokyo's Ikebukuro Station was unexpectedly sparse despite warm summer weather — ideal conditions for a cold beverage, or two. Across streetcar tracks and ...
Business / Tech Apr 20, 2018
Some cafes are offering college students simulated experiences of everyday life at work in a company, using virtual reality technology. The simulation takes the user through a day in the life of a company employee, moving beyond the explanations given at company information sessions. The content ...
Business Jan 30, 2018
Travel agency H.I.S. Co. said Tuesday that a robot will serve coffee to customers at a cafe it plans to open next month at its flagship branch in central Tokyo. The agency's new Henn Na Cafe (strange cafe) in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward will feature a ...