A pleasantly stimulating taste. Wasabi" is one of the most popular Japanese spices in Japan. In Shizuoka Prefecture, a famous producer of wasabi, there is an event called "Wasabi Fest. This time, the "Wasabi Fest" and FREAK'S STORE have collaborated to produce official goods.
What in the world does "Freaks Store" and Wasabi mean ......? In this article, we look back at the recent "Wasabi Fest" and, through interviews with three key persons, unravel the reality of this unique combination.
Last Friday, November 10 . On that day, the National Wasabi Producers Convention Shizuoka, also known as the "Wasabi Fest," was held at the famous Shizuoka Konya-gai shopping street.
In addition to selling wasabi entered in the National Wasabi Exhibit and processed wasabi products from Shizuoka City, food and beverages that go well with wasabi were also sold. There was also a display of Shizuoka wasabi and a tasting of freshly grated wasabi.
We want to promote wasabi, a specialty of the city and a World Agricultural Heritage Site, especially among young people. With this in mind, the "Freaks Store" was selected for this event. The store produced sweatshirts and a grater for grating wasabi as official goods to liven up the event.
Why did Wasabi Fest and Freaks Store...? The editorial staff wondered, and immediately spoke with one of the organizers of this event, Ms. Yoshino Masuda of the Agricultural Policy Division, Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Economic Affairs Bureau, Shizuoka City.
We wanted to increase the number of Wasabi fans. Most of the wasabi that we eat in our daily lives comes in a tube. However, freshly grated Wasabi is really delicious. I wanted more people to know about it, especially the younger generation! That's why we approached Freaks Store.
Mr. Masuda himself was not fond of wasabi until he was assigned to his current department. However, after learning about the background of production and coming into contact with "real" wasabi through his work, he is now completely hooked on wasabi. Mr. Masuda continues, "I was not a fan of wasabi until I started working at the department.
How can we appeal to young people? We consulted with the "Freaks Store" to find out what we could do to appeal to young people and how we could take a fashionable and modern approach. They made suggestions one after another that we in the administration could not come up with, which was very encouraging. The result was this sweatshirt and a special wasabi grinder. Isn't it really cute? You can actually grind wasabi properly!
The "Wasabi Fest" was held at a corner of the Konya-gai Meitengai shopping district, where the "Freaks Store" store is located. . Mr. Masuda told us that this was one of the deciding factors for this collaboration.
Freak's Store has surprised us in the past by teaming up with a variety of different industries, and this time, its flexible attitude remains unchanged. It seems that the collaboration utilizing each other's strengths has successfully attracted young people.
At the Freaks Store booth, visitors were able to win a special Wasabi grinder on the spot. Visitors were excited to see the ingenious packaging.
The well-known Huinamu blogger was involved in the production of this special wasabi grinder.
That person is Toshimichi Takeuchi of Take Product. We immediately asked Mr. Takeuchi about the collaboration and the special horseradish grinder he was involved in producing.
We have been working with Daytona International, which operates the Freaks Store, on various projects since March 2020, when the Nagano store relocated and opened. I have been involved not only in pop-ups of "Take-Products" but also in the interior design of the store, such as the "goodwill" of the store. Then I was approached by Freaks Store and asked if I could not only make sweatshirts for their events, but also create products that would bring joy to their customers. I am a lumber dealer, so I decided to take advantage of that and make a "wasabi grinder," something that had never been done before! And so we got started.
You've never seen a wasabi grinder that hangs around your neck, have you? (Laughs) If we were going to work with Freaks Store, we wanted to make the world's first wasabi grinder that could be worn like an accessory. Wasabi = stimulation, and stimulation = fire, so I decided to create a design that combines the fire motif emblem that American bikers used to wear with wasabi. I hope you will try actually rubbing the wasabi.
Mr. Takeuchi, who said it was his first time making a wasabi grater, credited the three-week production period to the close cooperation with Freaks Store and the generous attitude of Shizuoka City for the excellent workmanship. Mr. Takeuchi also talked about his future plans.
On the one hand, I think collaboration with different industries is interesting, but on the other hand, I also think it has a fragile side. . There are always cases where one of us has to compromise. . It is really important to not break at that point and to proceed with pride in one's own creativity and branding. Furthermore, I think the key is to be able to move forward with a clear vision of what lies ahead. It is important not to "just make something and be done with it," but to continue to explore various possibilities and to keep moving forward. Overseas expansion is one of those possibilities. I would like to continue to explore these possibilities together with you.
Wasabi Dogs" made with freshly grated wasabi were also sold at the event. The juicy sausage and fresh wasabi were a perfect combination, and we, the team of reporters, were very impressed with this new sensation.
There was also Mr. Toshiyuki Kajiwara of "Freaks Store" innocently chewing on a wasabi dog. We asked Mr. Kajiwara, who was at the helm of the collaboration this time, to look back on the process leading up to the event.
. unfortunately, it is raining, but I am glad that everyone seems to be enjoying the event. The first time we worked with Shizuoka Prefecture was when we collaborated with the Shizuoka Prefectural Institute of Fisheries and Marine Technology in the "Osakana Freak" initiative. Shizuoka City government officials thought it was interesting and approached us, which led to our collaboration on the "Wasabi Fest" this time. Mr. Masuda, who was in charge of the project, was very flexible, and we were able to fully express the unique character of Freaks Store, which is one of its strengths.
As he continues his activities, he is sure that there are people out there who are watching. Mr. Kajiwara continues, "I felt great joy and hope in the fact that my activities have led to new initiatives.
We felt that it was not enough to just say, "The Freaks Store does a lot of things," but that is not enough. We felt that this was an issue that needed to be addressed, and in order to solve it, we decided to create the "Freaks Store".FREAK'S VILLAGE. a completely new type of business that allows customers to purchase online from a nationwide initiative called . At the root of it all is a genuine desire for our customers to enjoy our activities. I would like to continue to value various connections and how to communicate them to reach as many customers as possible.
Freaks Village" launched on Friday, November 17, 2012. In addition to the collaboration at this year's Wasabi Fest, the idea is to disseminate nationwide the collaborations that have been created through "Freaks Store's" past efforts with creators from all over Japan and its ties to the local community. Be sure to check it out.
On the day of the event, I had probably consumed about a month's worth of wasabi. The event ended when I finally got used to the stimulation of the wasabi, and could finally feel the depth of the wasabi.
"Tag-teaming with local government" . It may sound easy to say, but it is easier said than done. Behind the scenes, many people are involved, connected, and their thoughts and ideas are put together to form a single entity.
We will keep our eyes on "Freaks Store" as it continues to engage in such activities.
© OWL Inc.
Photo_Anna Hirama
