Why I Run a Local Construction Firm in Urakawa, Hokkaido

~The question of 'Who am I building this for?' brought me here~

I was 32 when I returned to Urakawa.

For 10 years, I had been running around construction sites in the Kanto region. Based mainly in Chiba, I worked on large-scale projects like housing complex renovations and public works worth hundreds of millions of yen. It was big work, involving a lot of people and money.

However, one comment from a client stuck in my head for a long time.

'I wonder why they're building something like this in a place like this.'

I think it was said casually. But it pierced me deeply.

'Who am I building this for?'

I just couldn't find the answer to that.

A blow received at a snack bar

Every time I visited home, I felt a sense of unease.

One night, when I stopped by a local snack bar, a customer who lived in a house built by my predecessor—my father—spoke to me.

'When I told your father, "This is the kind of house I want," he built me something even better than that. You should really look at your father's work.'

It was a quiet, yet heavy statement.

While I had spent 10 years running around construction sites, my father had been here, continuing to build 'something better' for clients whose faces he could see.

That one comment was much bigger than any multi-million yen project.

'I don't want to do public works where I can't see the faces of the people involved; I want to do work that makes the client right in front of me happy.'

The night I decided that, I decided to return to Urakawa.

Building a 'Home,' not just a 'House'

At Jinba Construction, we write 'house' as 'ie' (in katakana).

Not a House (a box), but a Home (a place you want to return to).

Building isn't the end. It's something we nurture together with the residents, adapting to changes in their lifestyle. That is our definition of 'home building'.

Furthermore, houses create the 'scenery' of a town. Each house adds up to become the face of the town. I want to create, with my own hands, a landscape that makes people who once left want to come back, thinking, 'This really is a good place'.

'Not just building houses, but creating scenery.'

That is one of the reasons why I continue to work in this town.

A town you don't run away from, rather than a town you can't escape

'Why are you in Urakawa?' I am often asked by people in the same industry.

The population has fallen below 10,000. Craftsmen are aging, and the number of successors continues to decline. We are moving past 'labor shortage' and approaching 'labor absence.' There is no hiding that harsh reality.

However, this is what I think.

Urakawa is a 'region advanced in facing challenges.' It is a town already experiencing what urban areas will face in ten years.

If that is the case, this is also the front line where we can become an 'advanced region for problem-solving.'

Creating a system where craftsmen can grow. Bringing AI to the construction site to expand the possibilities of a small construction firm. Building relationships that make students want to come back and say, 'I'm home.'

All of these can be done at a speed that large organizations cannot match. Because we can see each other's faces, we can try, fix, and try again.

There are definitely things that 'only a small construction firm in a small town can do.'

The axis of judgment: 'Five-way satisfaction'

When I decide on something, I think in terms of five-way satisfaction.

Good for the client (resident). Good for the maker (craftsman). Good for society. Good for the future. Good for myself.

I do not take on work that does not satisfy these five conditions.

And I value being on the giving side—being a Giver. I don't hold back information, I don't ask for anything in return, and I jump in first.

'Don't try to involve others; let yourself be involved.' That is my way of doing things.

There is no future on the extension of the status quo

What I have inherited as the third generation is significant. My grandfather put down roots, my father protected them, and now I hold that baton.

However, just protecting it is not enough to pass it on to the next generation.

We must continue to "evolve." Deepening, advancing, innovating—continuing to change in many ways.

There is growth in difficulty, and there is a future beyond the challenge.

The choice to live in this town is not because I "cannot escape" for me. I am here because I decided "not to run away."

For whom are you building right now? Are you delivering "something more" for the customers whose faces you can see? I believe that continuing to hold that question is the strength of us local construction firms.

Mitsumasa Jimba, Representative Director, Jimba Construction Co., Ltd.
Based in Urakawa Town, Hokkaido, working under the motto "Home building is town building."