Shinise: Long-Established Businesses

Japanology Plus Season 3 Episode 20

Overview:
Business. It’s a dog-eat-dog world. And nowhere is that more true than in Tokyo’s uptown Shibuya neighborhood, with its high rents and discerning customers. For those who work in the area, the rise and fall of new businesses is part of the fabric of everyday life. Yet the average lifespan of a business in Japan is considerably longer than in most countries: roughly 30 years compared to 18 or so in the US. Contributing to this statistic is Japan’s abundance of long-established businesses. So many of these companies exist that there is a special word for them: shinise. Japan has around 26 thousand companies with a century or more of history. Of these, more than a thousand have passed the bicentenary mark, and a handful have battled through for a staggering thousand years or longer. What are the secrets of Japan's many centuries-old firms? Peter Barakan meets with expert Yoshihiko Takubo, while Matt Alt visits Nihonbashi, the old heart of Tokyo, guided by shinise expert Haruki Kawasaki.

Genre : Documentary, Talk

Actors : Peter Barakan, Emma Howard, Matt Alt

Release Date : 2016-08-04

Duration : 28 menit

Rating : ⭐ 0/10 (0 votes)

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Other Episodes (Season 3)

Japanophiles: Maud Archambault
1. Japanophiles: Maud Archambault
Silk
2. Silk
Underground Tokyo
3. Underground Tokyo
Earthquake Preparedness
4. Earthquake Preparedness
Japanophiles: Jorge Cabeza Fernandez
5. Japanophiles: Jorge Cabeza Fernandez
Japanophiles: Pico Iyer
6. Japanophiles: Pico Iyer
Okinawan Dance
7. Okinawan Dance
Whisky
8. Whisky
Quest for Perfect Skin
9. Quest for Perfect Skin
Bladed Tools
10. Bladed Tools
Family Crests
11. Family Crests
Breakfast
12. Breakfast
Footwear
13. Footwear
Running
14. Running
Emoji
15. Emoji
Ekiben
16. Ekiben
Bicycles
17. Bicycles
Kimono
18. Kimono
Kokeshi Dolls
19. Kokeshi Dolls
Shinise: Long-Established Businesses
20. Shinise: Long-Established Businesses
Japanophiles: Rezaul Karim Chowdhury
21. Japanophiles: Rezaul Karim Chowdhury
Toilets
22. Toilets
Bridges
23. Bridges
A Nation of Singers
24. A Nation of Singers
Restoring Castles
25. Restoring Castles
Volcanoes
26. Volcanoes
School Club Activites
27. School Club Activites
Smells
28. Smells
Paper
29. Paper
Japanophiles: Paul Lorimer
30. Japanophiles: Paul Lorimer
Katsuobushi
31. Katsuobushi
Day Care for Kids
32. Day Care for Kids
Sweets and Snacks
33. Sweets and Snacks
Hairdressing
34. Hairdressing


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