On January 22nd, members of the Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings project, which kicks off the "Nipponista" pop-up event in New York on February 6th, visited Minister of State for Cool Japan Strategy Tomomi Inada along with Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings President Hiroshi Onishi and others.
The event was selected as part of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's Cool Japan Strategy Promotion Project for fiscal 2013, and for one week from February 6th to 13th, a pop-up store (47 GREENE STREET NEW YORK CITY, NY) was set up to showcase Japanese fashion, art, food, and lifestyle products and technologies. Eight female buyers who plan and manage the project visited Minister Inada as a preliminary presentation, during which buyers in charge of food, art, women's clothing, women's accessories, men's clothing, and lifestyle each introduced the brands and items they will be proposing in New York. "It's extremely important to consider not just Japanese traditions, but also how to utilize their culture and techniques in modern society and share them with the world. Simply preserving these traditions will only lead to depletion, so I want young women to explore new avenues that will lead to the future," Inada said in welcoming the Minister. Since fiscal 2011, Isetan Mitsukoshi has been running the "JAPAN SENSES" campaign at three key stores, with the goal of "studying the background behind Japan's finest products, culture, and techniques, and then conveying them to our customers," according to President Onishi. Sales from the campaign have grown to account for approximately 20% of the store's total sales during the campaign period. Key items from the campaign, which will be launched in April this year, including collaborative works between Aomori Ai and Japanese designers and a new sake developed by Nagai Sake Brewery based on wine culture, are scheduled for pre-sale in New York. Minister Inada listened to the thoughts of each buyer, who said, "Since joining the company, I have wanted to do work that will help build bridges between Japan and the world, and now that my goal has been fulfilled, I feel motivated" (Art), "I hope to produce results as a representative of Japan" (Food), "I want to raise the status of Japanese artisans" (Miscellaneous goods), and "I will go out into the world together with creators who have a strong desire to innovate traditional Japanese techniques" (Living Style). Minister Inada then offered her encouragement, saying, "Naturally, there are differences between what Japanese people consider good and what is considered good overseas, and Japanese 'cool' has many faces. Going forward, we must also consider designing Cool Japan itself. Listening to the presentations by the young female buyers this time, I felt the 'transcendent passion' that is unique to women. I hope you will communicate this to the world as a representative of Japanese women."
