Abby Smith

Participants described their business model as centred on customer convenience and satisfying customers. The logic being that this drives foot traffic, attracts new customers, increases customer loyalty and retention, and increases purchases, ultimately driving up revenue and profits. […] you always try to hang on to any customer you can keep. And however you keep them, you do what you’ve got to do.

Kyoto’s Nishijin district is well-known for its textiles, many of which are turned into exquisite kimono. To better get to know these traditions, I visited the Orinasu-kan Museum of Hand-Weaving for a better look at these fabrics, and the master weavers at the Watabun workshop next door. I also visited Tondaya, a traditional Nishijin home in which visitors can try on the authentic kimono of the Tanaka family, kimono wholesalers and custodians of the home for thirteen generations.

Though still within the city limits, the beautifully pastoral Keihoku is located deep in the mountains of northeast Kyoto. I got a taste of the authentic country lifestyle with the Tanaka family, who run several guest houses out of traditional Japanese country homes, and was surprised to see the extent of the local’s artistic talent at a closeby café and glass-making studio. Keihoku is a region of Kyoto you may not have heard of before.