Japan trip reports 4: Crystal

Hi everyone! Here’s our last Japan trip report, from Crystal from Karaka. Enjoy!

It was a great honor to have the opportunity to study in Japan. Under the guidance of Nick and Glen, our team departed on 29th of September, flying 11 hours to arrive at Tokyo Narita Airport.

The next day, we visited Kappabashi Cook’s Town, known for its restaurant necessities and packaging. I discovered a food box with a handle that would be perfect for our company’s platters, making it easy to carry flat without risking the sushi’s appearance by sliding around.

Our team went to a supermarket food hall to learn about how they display products. We saw Japanese railway bento, which is delicious seafood on rice in a reusable ceramic pot. They also had collapsible chopsticks that are handy and save space. A great choice for all kinds of users.

We visited the Ramen Museum in Yokohama with Mr. Takagi, which taught us about the history of ramen in Japan and made us feel nostalgic.

For the next three days, we went to our suppliers’ factories.

Our soy sauce supplier, with more than 300 years of history, became successful because they never gave up and kept coming up with new ideas. We learned from them that being persistent is really important. As well as their famous products, we got to try the soy sauce ice cream that is unique to this region, and it tastes great.

The vinegar factory is very careful – they have thorough systems in place to make sure everything they do is high quality and mistake-free. We want to be as careful and strict in our work as they are.

The ginger factory is a family business that’s been around for over 50 years. The family works hard together to make sure the business keeps growing. This matches our company’s philosophy.

Our mayo supplier is a company that really cares about its customers and is very welcoming. When we visited their mayo centre, they even put up the New Zealand flag and a welcome sign. Their company is full of energy and creativity, just like their logo. We want to be as sincere and warm with our customers as they are.

I had a great time during my trip and enjoyed the cleanliness of public areas in Japan. The absence of trash cans in public areas might have contributed to the cleanliness and lack of odor. Additionally, experiencing the variety of delicious Japanese cuisine was a wonderful experience for me.

I want to express my gratitude to company for providing me with this opportunity, our bosses for making this trip possible, and to Glen for organizing and arranging everything throughout the trip. Of course I had a great time with my wonderful team. I plan to apply the knowledge I gained during my journey to enhance my shop operations in the future.