[Extra Edition] When I walk through the streets of Tokyo, I see the business side of things before I see the 'interior design' of the shops.

“Oh, what a waste of a shop...”

Omotesando, Ginza, Ebisu. As I walk through the glamorous streets of Tokyo,
I find myself 'deconstructing' shops as naturally as breathing. Haha.

While ordinary people point their smartphones at a shop saying, 'Wow, how stylish!', my brain automatically starts a 'business diagnosis' of the store.
It’s more than an occupational hazard; it’s a desperate curse.

But because I have seen countless sites and the blood, sweat, and tears behind the numbers of their owners, I am convinced of one thing.

“Discomfort in the exterior or interior design” is 100% linked to “business drift.”

I’ll be honest.
The interior you think you’ve 'perfected' might actually be silently turning away your precious customers.

This is an extra edition.
What do I read when I walk around town?
And can your shop truly be called 'okay'?
I will talk about the cruel 'truth of management' that lurks behind the design.

1. The persuasiveness of the exterior: In the first meter of the entrance, customers are looking for a 'reason to leave'.

Opening a shop in Tokyo is like standing in front of the toughest audience in the world.
Customers judge whether a place is 'right for them' in just three seconds before entering.

• The problem of unreadable menus: A sign written only in cursive English. It’s stylish, but aren’t you making your target wealthy demographic anxious and cutting off new customers at the door?

• The price of a 'hard-to-open door': A heavy brass door feels luxurious, but it becomes a 'psychological barrier' that makes female customers hesitate for a moment. That few seconds of hesitation lowers your visit frequency.

• Abandoned umbrella stands and trash cans: A cheap plastic trash can right in front of an exterior that cost tens of millions to build. The world of your brand dies right there.

• Shops that disappear at night: A shop that looks beautiful during the day but has weak lighting at night. Customers will pass by wondering, 'Are they open?' and drift to other shops.

• Personalizing the shop window: Staff bags and supplies are visible from the outside. Customers don’t feel a 'dream' in a shop where the reality of daily life is leaking out.

[Warning to business owners] Is your entrance 'inviting' customers? Or is it 'rejecting' them?

Please also check out my past articles ^^

2. Lighting strategy: That 'brightness' might be killing your average spend per customer.

Lighting is not just 'electricity'.
It is a 'device for creating sales'.

• Mirrors that make your complexion look dead: The overhead lighting in the fitting room is too harsh, casting deep shadows on the face. Who would want to buy expensive clothes in front of a mirror that makes them look old?

• Cafes where the food looks "pale": Efficiency-focused daylight-white LEDs. Does your signature dish look delicious under that light? Just lacking "warmth" is enough to diminish appetite.

• Customers fighting with smartphone reflections: Downlights hitting glass tables directly, causing reflections in photos. When customers give up on taking pictures because they "don't look good," your store's advertising opportunity also disappears.

• Counter seats that are too bright: Bare bulbs hitting the eyes, causing glare. Customers unconsciously feel like they "want to leave the store quickly" and stop ordering more.

• The "reality" of the restroom: The seating area has a great mood, but only the restroom is as bright as a convenience store. You are pulled back to reality in an instant, and the magic is broken.

[Warning to Business Owners] Does that lighting make customers feel like they "want to stay longer"?

3. The Philosophy of Flow: You are paying for your staff's "wasted three steps" with your payroll

The first thing I look at when I enter a store is the staff's "number of steps."
Flow design is the very "rationality" of management.

• Register lines blocking the entrance: Even though the store is busy, new customers can't enter because of the people waiting in line. Are you repeating this physical opportunity loss every day?

• Back-and-forth for cutlery: The place to get chopsticks or napkins is far away. How much in labor costs are you paying every month for the accumulation of those few steps?

• The restroom location is a "quiz": A door that blends into the wall. Customers ask the staff for the location repeatedly, stopping them from serving others. This is a failure of design.

• Bottlenecks in bussing (cleaning up): The area to drop off dirty dishes is too small. Dishes overflow into the dining area, and the customers' visual satisfaction drops sharply.

• Aisle widths where you can't pass each other: The few seconds of loss created every time staff members have to avoid each other. It turns into hundreds of thousands of yen in losses per year.

[Warning to Business Owners] Flow design is not a matter of appearance. It is the direct connection point between "love" for your staff and "profit."

4. Investment Choices: Stores that try to make everything "100 points" and end up with 0

Budgets are not infinite.
Smart owners put all their effort only into the "places customers touch."

• A 1-million-yen chair over 1-million-yen wallpaper: You don't touch the walls, but you touch the chairs with your skin. What increases the repeat visit rate is undoubtedly the "comfort of the chair."

• Spending money on 'invisible air conditioning': Exposed piping is fine. Instead, are you investing in 'powerful cooling capacity' for the summer? Uncomfortable temperatures ruin all design.

• Ease of cleaning flooring: Rough tiles chosen only for their look. Did you calculate the labor costs (time) for daily cleaning before choosing them?

• The 'paper quality' of the menu: Rather than making the interior luxurious, upgrading the paper quality of the menu that customers hold and look at closely conveys a sense of high quality more directly.

• Using 'fake' plants: Fakes for high places out of reach, real ones for places right in front of you. This rationality is 'design as an investment'.

[Warning to business owners] Are you investing in 'self-satisfaction'? Are you investing in 'customer experience'?

5. Tokyo's Selection: The single factor that separates the 'shops that remain' from the 'shops that disappear' in 3 years

Tokyo is a cruel experimental ground.
Only shops with a 'philosophy (logic)', not just trends, will survive.

• The expiration date of trendy 'Korean-style': Haven't you become a shop that will be called 'old' in two years? Chasing trends is an act of shortening your own lifespan.

• 'Hospitality' of power outlets and Wi-Fi: Instead of driving customers away, intentionally set up the infrastructure. That becomes an investment that nurtures a 'community of fans'.

• Acoustic noise: Distorted sound flowing from cheap speakers. Aren't you ruining the class of the space? Is the BGM designed to 'envelop' rather than just be 'heard'?

• Will the shop card become a 'souvenir'?: A design that makes people want to take it home. That is the strongest advertisement, as the shop walks out into the world.

• Is there a 'place' for the shop owner?: Can you love the shop yourself and want to stay there? That passion will definitely be transmitted to the customers.

6. To all designers: We are looking for partners who can empathize with this 'madness'

To the designers who have read this far,
or to all the professionals involved in design and construction.

If you, like me, feel frustrated while walking through the city thinking, 'Ah, what a waste...'
Or if you are craving to create designs that carry the owner's life (business) rather than superficial 'Instagrammability'.

Please, join the 'round table' at ODG.

We are not just looking for workers to draw blueprints.
We are looking for true strategists who understand the loneliness of business owners and can build 'winning spaces' together with logic and passion.

'My design has a supporting business strategy.'
'I want to do work that is more directly linked to the client's profit.'

Why not give shape to that desire at ODG?
We highly value your talent and will connect you with owners who are serious about success.

7. Finally: Perform a self-check of your store right now

More than the finish of the walls or ceilings, the "intent" embedded within them comes through to me.

Are you aiming for short-term recovery, or building a brand for a lifetime?
Will you compete on price, or do you want to be chosen for your value?
Business choices bleed through into the space.
That is why ODG prioritizes strategy before design.

Being stylish is a prerequisite.
On top of that, it must function, endure, and contribute to revenue.

If you are currently feeling even the slightest bit of "anxiety" about the drawings or estimates in front of you.
Or, if you are wandering in the dark, not knowing where to start.

Not just a "vaguely good space," but a "winning space."

It doesn't matter if the drawings aren't finalized or if the plan is a blank slate.
The "organization of thought" before construction begins is where we demonstrate our greatest strength. As a partner to turn your ideals into your "strongest asset" on the battlefield that is Tokyo.

Please come to our "round table" at any time.

↑ Please also check out the Chapter 1 compilation ^^