I often feel that in today's modern world we overlook some of the more mundane aspects of life. This is understandable, since if something is mundane and we see it every day, it does not merit a second glance in the eyes of many. Why bother giving a mundane thing a second glance, when it will be seen again before too long? However, what is mundane in some countries is, of course, the exact opposite of mundane in others, and in some circumstances what is mundane almost everywhere is brought out of the world of mundaneness in some countries either by its being a particularly poor representation of the mundane thing, or an uncommonly good representation of the mundane thing. To step away from the philosophical tone of this first paragraph, what I am saying is that some countries do things better than others, and Japan is no exception, even when it comes to things that are mundane. In this article, I’ll be talking about the unequalled coolness that is Japanese convenience stores.
I know what you all are thinking: “Convenience stores? Really? Amongst all of the Harajuku style and Nomihoudai and insane Japanese accessories out there, you have singled out convenience stores as being particularly note-worthy?” However, believe me when I say that my belief has merit. How often would you say you go to convenience stores in your country? I do not know about most countries, but in my native-born Australia, and in my current country of tentative residence, England, I use convenience stores exactly never. When I need to buy lunch I will either go to a supermarket, or a chemist, or the union shop at my university. If I have to pay a bill, I will most probably either do it online or arrange for an automatic transfer. If I have to withdraw money, I will go to a bank. And if I want to buy a ticket for a concert or to a theme park, I will buy it online, which in itself can be a tiresome procedure. Convenience stores are somewhat hard to come by, unless you live in one of the big cities. And even if they do exist where you live, the stuff that they sell is so ridiculously overpriced that unless you have enough disposable income to drop $10 on the street and not be bothered to pick it up, you are going to look for somewhere else to pick up your potato chips and toilet paper. In short, despite their being open 24/7, convenience stores in other countries are not convenient at all.
The exterior of a Lawson (top) and a 7-11 (bottom); the two most common convenience stores in Japan.
Japan, however, took the idea of a convenience store, actually thought about what the word ‘convenient’ means, and rolled with the concept of having a one-stop shop with the facilities to look after all of the day-to-day errands a person may need to do. As such, a person can expect to be able to do the following at any Japanese convenience store:
I know what you all are thinking: “Convenience stores? Really? Amongst all of the Harajuku style and Nomihoudai and insane Japanese accessories out there, you have singled out convenience stores as being particularly note-worthy?” However, believe me when I say that my belief has merit. How often would you say you go to convenience stores in your country? I do not know about most countries, but in my native-born Australia, and in my current country of tentative residence, England, I use convenience stores exactly never. When I need to buy lunch I will either go to a supermarket, or a chemist, or the union shop at my university. If I have to pay a bill, I will most probably either do it online or arrange for an automatic transfer. If I have to withdraw money, I will go to a bank. And if I want to buy a ticket for a concert or to a theme park, I will buy it online, which in itself can be a tiresome procedure. Convenience stores are somewhat hard to come by, unless you live in one of the big cities. And even if they do exist where you live, the stuff that they sell is so ridiculously overpriced that unless you have enough disposable income to drop $10 on the street and not be bothered to pick it up, you are going to look for somewhere else to pick up your potato chips and toilet paper. In short, despite their being open 24/7, convenience stores in other countries are not convenient at all.
The exterior of a Lawson (top) and a 7-11 (bottom); the two most common convenience stores in Japan.
Japan, however, took the idea of a convenience store, actually thought about what the word ‘convenient’ means, and rolled with the concept of having a one-stop shop with the facilities to look after all of the day-to-day errands a person may need to do. As such, a person can expect to be able to do the following at any Japanese convenience store:
1. Buy food – Convenience stores offer most of the general foods offered at grocery stores, as well as a frankly staggering array of pre-packaged ready-to-eat foods, at a price that is comparable to that at a supermarket. The convenience stores will even offer to warm up hot meals for you.
2. Courier and postal service – Japanese post offices are not open on weekends or evenings, so when you have an emergency delivery to make or parcel to collect, the fact that you can go to a convenience store to send/receive your post is absolutely fantastic.
3. Photocopier and fax service – Incredibly convenient when you are one of many people who does not work in an office, or studies at school or university. Not having access to a photocopier of fax machine can be incredibly bothersome at times, and convenience stores admirably step up to the plate and provide a solution to that problem.
4. ATMs – Japanese banks have some of the worst opening hours I have ever known. Like post offices, banks are never open on weekends or evenings, which is a serious nuisance if you, like many people, only ever have the time to do your banking on weekends and evenings. Japanese convenience stores stop this from being a problem. The ATMs in some convenience stores accept foreign cards as well, which has saved many-a-struggling-exchange-student, including yours truly, on more than one occasion.
5. Payment service for bills – This service is particularly great for people who, for whatever reason, cannot or will not set up automatic withdrawal for their bills. This service makes paying for bills, and co-incidentally the business of keeping track of your money, much easier than it otherwise would be.
6. Ticket service – Japan is one country that does not accept debit cards for internet purchases. This is a problem for people who are either under eighteen, or for whatever other reason do not have a credit card, when they want to buy a ticket to something. Australia is another such country, and many times I would have to borrow my parents’ credit cards for ticket purchases. Japan has made it easy for people without credit cards to purchase tickets for planes, concerts, theme parks, etc. You can buy tickets at convenience stores as though they are an item of food or some type of good, which is far easier than buying a ticket online and having to wait for it to be sent to you, or searching for a place that specialises in tickets, which can be hard to come by in places that are not major cities.
Today in Japan there are over 42,000 convenience stores. The most popular of these stores is 7-11, with nearly 13,000 stores (7-11, incidentally, is incredibly convenient for people with foreign bank accounts, because the ATMs there will accept more foreign credit cards than ATMs in other convenience stores), followed by Lawson, with 9,500 stores, and Family Mart, with about 7,500 stores. Considering how Australia only has about 400 7-11 stores, Canada has about 500 stores , and even America has significantly less 7-11s at 8,200 stores, it is pretty clear that the Japanese love their convenience stores.
These are both photos of the insides of convenience stores. The photo on top is of a refrigerated shelf with a selection of ready-to-eat foods. Below this is a photo of one of the many shelves of snacks, which are really reasonably-priced.
In terms of what is cool in Japan, convenience stores are probably not something that most would immediately think of. But from a day-to-day life perspective, it is obvious that convenience stores are one of the most fantastic things that Japan offers. They are always open, you can do almost everything you need to do during the day in one, and in my opinion they are one of the coolest things about Japan.
These are both photos of the insides of convenience stores. The photo on top is of a refrigerated shelf with a selection of ready-to-eat foods. Below this is a photo of one of the many shelves of snacks, which are really reasonably-priced.
In terms of what is cool in Japan, convenience stores are probably not something that most would immediately think of. But from a day-to-day life perspective, it is obvious that convenience stores are one of the most fantastic things that Japan offers. They are always open, you can do almost everything you need to do during the day in one, and in my opinion they are one of the coolest things about Japan.
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