Nipponica

Japan's capsule toy industry has come a long way from the corner of the supermarket, as it enjoys a new boom at home that is spurring multiple market players to set their sights on overseas expansion.

The whole Gacha Industrial Complex is fun on one hand but it is a kind of warm-and-fuzzy introduction to gambling for kids and adults. You get a prize every time but rarely the one you actually wanted, which encourages you to take another chance.

The old man will now leave the room and let joy return.

It had been raining since the morning, but the rain stopped occasionally during the parade. Sensing that the guests were losing energy in the heat, Baymax stopped the floats and splashed water on them. The guests cheered loudly.

Baymax for PM.

A recent global survey conducted by Gallup on employee engagement, including job motivation and willingness to contribute to an organization, found that the percentage of employees in Japan who are motivated by and actively engaged in their work was just 6% in 2023, which was among the lowest levels in the world. The result for Japan stands out in contrast to the average of 23% worldwide and 18% in East Asia. Mongolia was the East Asian country with the highest proportion of motivated and engaged employees, at 41%.

Tracks with what I see in my everyday office life.

When passengers and airport staff speak, the display shows a translation into one of 13 languages, including English and Chinese. This appears on a transparent display, allowing speakers to still see each other’s faces.

Click through to the article to see the photo of how this works. Pretty cool tech and I hope they keep it after the trial period.

Nikkei and JPX Market Innovation & Research will remove Lawson, a convenience store chain, from the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 on July 9 due to the company being designated as a stock "to be delisted" by the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Lawson isn't going away but it is now co-owned by Mitsubishi & KDDI. But still, good night my dearest.

Since its arrival on Japan's shores a quarter-century ago, American membership-only warehouse food and home goods club retailer Costco has grown significantly and evolved into being seen by many as a consumption-driven savior for struggling local economies.

The CostCo bulgogi stick was the only thing keeping peace between Japan and Korea over the past decade. May it drip scalding hot meat juice on me for years to come.

The man told the Mainichi, "In the workplace, there was always an unwelcoming atmosphere toward marriage and having children. I was very sad."

We don’t live in a world where the employer owns the employee anymore. Black companies like this should not be allowed to operate like this.

Emirates resumed flights of the superjumbo at Kansai International Airport on June 1, with daily round trips between Kansai and Dubai International Airport. Airlines had paused flights of A380s to Kansai as passenger numbers plummeted amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Love the big sky whales.

The number of mental disorder cases recognized as work-induced in fiscal 2023 hit a record high for the fifth consecutive year at 883, up 173 from the previous year, the government said Friday.

The two biggest Japanese airline operators said the guidelines address customer behaviors such as badgering staff, irrational demands and physical violence, among other typical issues.

Obviously good for the employees of the two airlines and good for the passengers that have the decency to treat these employees like human beings. But, as a troublesome customer can be more than just a nuisance for an employee and be an actual safety hazard for a whole airplane full of passengers, should these guidelines come from the government level and have criminal penalties?