The economics of this fascinate me. There is absolutely no way selling paper copies of a single book (even/especially if it changes daily: what happens to unsold stock?) can cover the costs of ground floor retail store rental in the Ginza plus apparently engaging boutique branding agencies to do in depth explorations of a logo complete with a custom typeface.
For reference, a standard bunko paperback in Japan costs on the order of ¥600 (US$4), maybe 2-3x that if you splash out on the hardcover.
I'm familiar with the fascination (at least in Tokyo) with pop-up stores or new tiny places that sell just one niche thing (let's say "boutique popcorn", or a certain new type of doughnut) and are heavily marketed through SNS (social networks). But those places are quite ephemeral and are sustained by huge queues of people trying to buy "the new thing", and die in some weeks.
But with the Ginza location, even not being in the main street, no way they're covering the costs unless they're selling them for tens of thousands of yens each.
Also it's not like a new thing, they have Google reviews since at least 10 years ago. Unless they own the building or it's a marketing thing, I don't understand the business.
I think sometimes commercial landlords will offer a below-market deal on a small space for an interesting concept with the idea that it will bring more foot traffic to the area and increase the value of their other holdings. Being off the main street adds some support for this motive.
decimalenough · · focus · HN ↗
For reference, a standard bunko paperback in Japan costs on the order of ¥600 (US$4), maybe 2-3x that if you splash out on the hardcover.
tecleandor · · focus · HN ↗
I'm familiar with the fascination (at least in Tokyo) with pop-up stores or new tiny places that sell just one niche thing (let's say "boutique popcorn", or a certain new type of doughnut) and are heavily marketed through SNS (social networks). But those places are quite ephemeral and are sustained by huge queues of people trying to buy "the new thing", and die in some weeks.
But with the Ginza location, even not being in the main street, no way they're covering the costs unless they're selling them for tens of thousands of yens each.
Also it's not like a new thing, they have Google reviews since at least 10 years ago. Unless they own the building or it's a marketing thing, I don't understand the business.
c22 · · focus · HN ↗