Would you like to run a bookstore with me in Kitasenju, Adachi Ward?

Hello. This is Yamamoto.
I usually run 'R65 Real Estate,' a real estate service that makes it easier for people over 65 to rent homes, under the motto of 'a rich life at any age.'

Alongside that, I also use real estate and vacant houses as a tenant myself, resisting the divisions in our immediate surroundings.
While there is the broader context of loneliness in old age becoming a social issue, purely and simply, I just wanted to make friends.

I have operated 15 share houses, utilized vacant houses as galleries, and even ran a private lodging business for a time, though I have since withdrawn from that. Since I do this as a side business, there are few projects, but many people are involved in each one.

Originally, I moved to Tokyo from Ehime at 24 for work after becoming a working adult. Even though there were many people in the city of Tokyo, I had no friends. Whenever I thought I had made a friend, it would be a solicitation for a religion or a business. There wasn't a single person who would become my friend.

That is why I began experimenting to see if I could create connections outside of work by building share houses and galleries.

One such experiment is a snack bar with rotating daily managers.
I run a snack bar called 'Snack New Shoin'. We have a different manager for each day of the week, making it a completely different shop every day of the week.

The motivation was that I wanted to try running a restaurant myself and I wanted to meet the people living in the neighborhood.

As a result, all the daily managers were gathered via Twitter, and I was happy that many people enjoyed it as a deep spot in Shoin-jinja.
Of course, it was a joint operation, and there were many times I caused a lot of trouble, but overall it was fun.

However, two full years have passed, COVID-19 hit, and I am currently struggling with whether to continue like this...

I decided whether to close or open the snack bar every month, making the decision each time.
The compensation from government subsidies was sufficient, and the snack bar business format is not something essential or urgent.
Also, since I am in a position where I meet many elderly people, naturally I could not stand in the shop.

When I posted on social media about whether or not to open the shop,
I sometimes received warnings from anonymous people.
'Mr. Yamamoto, since you are in a position to meet elderly people, you should not be standing in a snack bar.'

My snack bar has been almost completely closed. Two years have passed without knowing when I would be able to open it again.

It has become very difficult to meet new people.

I want to have friends in the neighborhood. However, I cannot run a snack bar. Thinking this way, I next thought I would like to run a bookstore.

I feel that if it were a bookstore, I could somehow connect with others even without speaking to anyone. If I reflect my own hobbies on the bookshelf, I might find people with the same interests and have a lively conversation.

I thought it would be a lot of fun to have a bookstore where I could get excited about my own hobbies.

When I go to a friend's house, I can't help but look at their bookshelf. While I find it interesting because it's like seeing inside my friend's head, I also feel a little embarrassed to have my own bookshelf seen.

And, just as it once was with the snack bar, if I create it together with many store managers, there will be less for me to do on my own.

Above all, I thought I would be able to become friends with store managers who think the same way.

When I looked into it, I learned that there are shared bookstores in various places. They rent out bookshelves for a few thousand yen a month. Dozens of people share the bookstore itself. Of course, there are profitable shelves and unprofitable shelves, but what they have in common is often that

they were not intended solely for profit
.

The fun of anyone being able to have a bookstore in the city.

I have visited several shared bookstores, and although I am worried about whether I can actually do it, I want to try it once.

And the other day, I rented a property in Kitasenju, Adachi Ward, for the planned bookstore. The reason for Kitasenju is that I am currently in love with Senju, and I already operate five share houses there. (Senju Nakamachi, Senju Asahicho, Senju Kawaharacho, Senju Hashidocho, Senju Yanagihara)

The white building along the old highway (Senju Nakamachi) is very lovely, so I decided to rent it. It is a 7-minute walk from Kitasenju Station.

It is a bit far for people from outside the ward to visit, but on the other hand, it is a road that people living in the south side of Senju often pass through. Nearby, there are the Tokyo University of the Arts (Music Environment Campus), Nakacho no Ie, BUoY, and others.

Since it is a small two-story building, I am thinking of making the first floor a bookstore and something else, and the second floor a coworking space for members only. Personally, I would like someone to brew coffee at the bookstore.

The name is tentative, but it is
Cooperative Bookstore Henkyo
—pronounced 'hen-kyo'.
The goal is to weave boundaries.
I am also considering the 'hen' from 'bias' (hen-tari).

It also sounds like 'benkyo' (study).
However, it is not as rigid as 'studying'.
Dropping the dakuten (voicing mark), it becomes 'Henkyo'.
Just as the former Snack New Showin was a place for people who wanted to start a food and beverage business,
I want Henkyo to be a place for people who want to start a bookstore.

The word 'frontier' (henkyo) carries a sense of loneliness, but at the same time,
it feels like an inviolable, otherworldly place.

For me, a bookstore has always been a place to go when I am lost in life.
I want to travel through a sea of books in an otherworldly place, like some distant land.

I have written out my delusions up to this point,
but honestly, I am very anxious.
30% excitement, 70% anxiety. The property is rented for three years.
What can I do in such a short time?
I cannot help but worry about whether I will end up in the red.

What I am anxious about is whether I can find shelf owners.
Ultimately, I would like to gather about 100 people, but first, I want to gather 20 people
to have discussions about this and that.

I am imagining the following types of people as shelf owners:
・Those who want to try opening their own bookstore
・Those who want to connect through books
・Those who want to stand in the shop as bookstore staff
・Those who have many books at home and are having trouble managing them
・Those who are already running a shop in Senju
In particular, for those running shops in Senju, it would be wonderful if Henkyo's books could serve as a catalyst for people to discover their shops, so if there is anyone running such a shop in Senju, I would love for you to contact me.

Well then, for all you eccentric people who have accompanied me through my rambling so far, perhaps you actually want to try running a bookstore. If so, please send me a DM.

Or, if you are not sure if you want to try it, but think it sounds somewhat interesting, please try sending a DM.

Please contact me via Twitter DM or LINE, not through a form.
※ I missed a lot of form entries...

https://twitter.com/ryo0y

Honestly, this is a cooperative bookstore concept that hasn't even started yet and is still very vague.

I am thinking it will be around 3,000 yen. Also, I have only rented this building for three years, so it is scheduled to end in three years. Even if you try running a bookstore for three years, it is about 100,000 yen. I am planning on 30cm square bookshelves, but I might allow apple crates or other stackable shelves. It is still really up in the air.

I want to meet many different people through bookshelves.