Interest
"Cool Japan" Mall Set To Open In China
posted on by Chris Nishijima
The "Cool Japan Promotion Organization," an organization dedicated to bringing traditional and popular Japanese culture to countries overseas through various business projects, has announced their plans to open a Japanese mall in the Chinese city of Ningbo, Zhejiang. The mall will provide shoppers with a unique Japanese shopping experience, including clothing stores and anime theaters, alongside other distinctly Japanese businesses.
The mall is the first step in "Cool Japan's" attempt to open up business ventures abroad, as many companies in Japan are reluctant to do so. "Cool Japan" is supported by both public and private entities is seen by the Abe administration as an attempt to improve the image of Japan abroad by making it seem "cool." This particular organization was started in November of last year to encourage and participate in the exportation of iconic Japanese goods, including music, food, anime and video games.
Altogether, the mall is estimated to cost approximately 56 billion yen, 10 billion of which will be provided directly from "Cool Japan" holdings. "Cool Japan" is working directly with the H2O Retailing Corporation of Osaka, who will be operating the mall once it has been built. H2O Retailing is responsible for the management of department stores throughout Japan, including Hankyu and Hanshin. At this time, no official date has been provided as to when the mall will be completed.
Following the conclusion of this project, "Cool Japan" will move on to the next part of their business abroad campaign, which will be a television station that will broadcast Japanese shows, anime, and films throughout Southeast Asia. The project will start with a 5 to 10 billion yen investment and is intended to be kicked off in Indonesia before spreading to other parts of the region. It will be a collaborative effort with the Tokyo based broadcasting company SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation.
The third part of the campaign is a Japanese restaurant district to be set in Singapore. "Cool Japan" plans to invest 1 billion yen into this phase of the project.
[Via: Asahi Shimbun.]
