Kirsty KawanoSnack makers in two of Japan’s leading tourism and commercial cities – Kyoto and Osaka – have banded together to sell a collection of their products online, at 60% below their regular price in a coronavirus-related relief project. The online sales aim to reduce food loss, while helping the companies survive a huge drop in demand due to the public’s self-quarantine to curb the spread of COVID-19.
The first round of sales under the Kyoto/Osaka Sweets & Food Maker Relief Project saw 1,000 snack assortments sold in just two hours. The organizers plan to continue the collaborative online sales and to help more manufacturers who are facing the same difficulties.
A state of emergency affecting sale and stock of Japanese snacks
Along with Tokyo, Osaka was included in the initial declaration of a state of emergency in Japan, on April 7. It was expanded to include the whole country on April 16. Prime Minister Abe requested stores to close and people to stay at home as much as possible to stem the spread of the new virus. That led to not only an unprecedented fall in the number of tourists, but also of business travelers.
Many of the snacks made by the companies participating in the Kyoto/Osaka Sweets & Food Maker Relief Project are marketed as souvenirs.
The majority of department stores and other retailers are cooperating with the prime minister’s request and closing temporarily or partially. Consequently, they are returning products to manufacturers. This has created mountains of inventory at the makers, who also have piles of ready-to-ship products with nowhere to ship them. Meanwhile, their use-by dates are creeping closer.
Faced with the threat of bankruptcy
With product returns exceeding sales, the companies are losing money. As the threat of bankruptcy looms, they at least want to pay the urgent costs of rent and ingredients. More than anything, the manufacturers say they want to prevent having to throw their carefully made snacks into the trash.
In the first round of online sales, 1,000 sets of the Kyoto/Osaka Sweets & Food Maker Relief Assortment were sold for 2,400 yen, compared with a regular retail price of 6,000 yen.
About eight companies from the two cities are each supplying multiple products to the collection. It includes rice crackers, cookies, cake and traditional Japanese sweets. All the products sent have more than seven days until their recommended use-by date. The contents of the assortment differs each time because it is a random selection of products that are available on a particular day.
Enjoy the tastes of traveling from your armchair
Some of the snacks are based on famous foods from the two cities, such as takoyaki from Osaka and matcha green tea from Kyoto. The makers say the assortment is perfect to help people enjoy their time at home and, amid limits on unnecessary travel, allow them to enjoy the tastes of Kyoto and Osaka without leaving their homes.
People interested in purchasing upcoming snack packs can register (in Japanese) on the website of Kyoto snack maker Souzen.
Part of the appeal of the snack pack is that it is an assortment, and therefore somewhat similar to discovering interesting treats as you wander the streets of the neighboring cities of Osaka and Kyoto. Coming together as a group has given the manufacturers’ products extra appeal in this way.
[Website] Kyoto/Osaka Sweets & Food Maker Relief Project (in Japanese)
