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A peek inside Japan's largest “Dagashi” store

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Re: A peek inside Japan's largest “Dagashi” store

#91

Post by nerdponx »

creamyhorror wrote: post #8

It's always bittersweet when I visit Japan and come across old establishments or traditions that an ageing proprietor or volunteers are trying to keep going. You can see the love and spirit they have for it, but it often looks like something too disconnected from the interests of young people and the vicissitudes of the changing economy to survive for much longer. A kissaten (old-style cafe) owner in Nagasaki who sha…

To be fair, this same phenomenon has been ongoing in the USA for a long time as well. How many candy shops and soda fountains are left, apart from a handful in coastal tourist towns? How many "neighborhood institutions" close every year in cities across North America?

Re: A peek inside Japan's largest “Dagashi” store

#92

Post by nradov »

awongh wrote: post #77
wrp wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I lived in Tokyo and it was years ago, so I don't know if I'm describing the current situation. It was very common to see largish buildings in residential areas which would have some barely functioning retail shop on the ground floor. Some elderly relative of the building owner would maintain the shop, and would have practically nothing to do since the shop got almost no business. I heard the whole motivation for thi…

yeah, I like the vibe of these shops too but maybe there’s a bit of japan fetishization for a kind of commerce that anywhere else wouldn’t make sense to have. One of the reasons for the Japanese economy’s stagnation over the last 20+ years is a lot of government spending on things that are not contributing to a healthy economy. I’m thinking about huge infrastructure projects but I’m sure this extends too many other a…

The book "Dogs and Demons: Tales From the Dark Side of Modern Japan" by Alex Kerr covers this well. It's over 20 years old but not much has really changed. The Japanese government is still engaging in major capital misallocation through unnecessary infrastructure projects, and they allow insolvent companies to continue operating.

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781466804500/dogsanddemons

Re: A peek inside Japan's largest “Dagashi” store

#93

Post by lazyllama »

gcheong wrote: post #88

“ He believes businesses exist to serve society and contribute back to people in the community. That they make profits are merely a side effect and that somewhere along the line the side effect became the main goal.” That change came about in 1970 with Milton Friedman’s ideas about the purpose of a corporation being solely to maximize shareholder value and we’ve all been paying the price ever since: https://www.forbe…

Actually it happened way before 1970 when Dodge sued Ford.

Dodge v. Ford Motor Company, 204 Mich. 459, 170 N.W. 668 (Mich. 1919) is a case in which the Michigan Supreme Court held that Henry Ford had to operate the Ford Motor Company in the interests of its shareholders, rather than in a charitable manner for the benefit of his employees or customers.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge_v._Ford_Motor_Co.

Re: A peek inside Japan's largest “Dagashi” store

#94

Post by fjeifisjf »

lazyllama wrote: post #93
gcheong wrote: post #88

“ He believes businesses exist to serve society and contribute back to people in the community. That they make profits are merely a side effect and that somewhere along the line the side effect became the main goal.” That change came about in 1970 with Milton Friedman’s ideas about the purpose of a corporation being solely to maximize shareholder value and we’ve all been paying the price ever since: https://www.forbe…

Actually it happened way before 1970 when Dodge sued Ford. Dodge v. Ford Motor Company, 204 Mich. 459, 170 N.W. 668 (Mich. 1919) is a case in which the Michigan Supreme Court held that Henry Ford had to operate the Ford Motor Company in the interests of its shareholders, rather than in a charitable manner for the benefit of his employees or customers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge_v._Ford_Motor_Co .

[dead]

Re: A peek inside Japan's largest “Dagashi” store

#95

Post by renewiltord »

gcheong wrote: post #88

“ He believes businesses exist to serve society and contribute back to people in the community. That they make profits are merely a side effect and that somewhere along the line the side effect became the main goal.” That change came about in 1970 with Milton Friedman’s ideas about the purpose of a corporation being solely to maximize shareholder value and we’ve all been paying the price ever since: https://www.forbe…

The East India Company, notoriously a servant of society and so effective in its service that the Crown actually assimilated its possessions so that the good it could do would be amplified by the Empire.

Re: A peek inside Japan's largest “Dagashi” store

#96

Post by Der_Einzige »

bombcar wrote: post #70
modernpink wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My favourite explanation comes from Hayek [1]. Profit is a signal for other economic actors to move into the market to provide more goods and services. If something is profitable it means people (society) sees value in it so it is right that we would want more of it to be produced. If we say no to profit, it means we extinguish a mechanism by which society can allocate resources. On top of this, it's impossible for r…

You have to combine it with the rent-seeking present in rental buildings; the rents will expand to drive out all but the most profitable businesses, which can be detrimental.

Hence why the LVT and Georgism need to be revisited. Even economists agree that a LVT is the only kind of tax that in theory stimulates the economy.

Re: A peek inside Japan's largest “Dagashi” store

#97

Post by Der_Einzige »

b112 wrote: post #39
janalsncm wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have thought about this almost every time I have visited other countries (usually in Asia). Many times there are a number of employees standing around “doing nothing”. In America that would be considered fat to be trimmed. But the number of times I have walked around a big box store in the US trying to find someone who works there makes me feel that the American model actually cheapens the experience and having red…

This is a new thing, too. Even 20 years ago, it wasn't so bad.

I'm convinced that a lot of push to return to office was from rich people who were mad as fk that they took had to wait for stuff due to worker shortages.

Re: A peek inside Japan's largest “Dagashi” store

#98

Post by htag »

gcheong wrote: post #88

“ He believes businesses exist to serve society and contribute back to people in the community. That they make profits are merely a side effect and that somewhere along the line the side effect became the main goal.” That change came about in 1970 with Milton Friedman’s ideas about the purpose of a corporation being solely to maximize shareholder value and we’ve all been paying the price ever since: https://www.forbe…

There is a general mythology that business greed is a new thing, and that it is an American invention. This is not the case.

I'd specifically like to call out the ancient slave trade as an example of business existing for profit at the great determent of communities. I'd also like to call out that the Europeans explores immediately starting exporting tobacco around the world when introduced to it, even though it clearly has negative health consequences. It was their learned behavior to make profits while harming the health of their customers.

Re: A peek inside Japan's largest “Dagashi” store

#99

Post by hintymad »

For those who understand Kanji or Chinese, do you feel that the Romanji like "Dagashi" gives you quite different feeling than the Kanji 駄菓子? I feel that Kanji somehow conveys more meaning and more emotion, to the point that I'd avoid using English-version of Google Maps when traveling in Japan, even though logically it does not make sense.

Re: A peek inside Japan's largest “Dagashi” store

#100

Post by bombcar »

Der_Einzige wrote: post #96
bombcar wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You have to combine it with the rent-seeking present in rental buildings; the rents will expand to drive out all but the most profitable businesses, which can be detrimental.

Hence why the LVT and Georgism need to be revisited. Even economists agree that a LVT is the only kind of tax that in theory stimulates the economy.

Both those encourage “best and highest use” as the real estate term goes, but that is not necessarily what we want to encourage in every case.

Of course never allowing and redevelopment has its own problems, but the solution is probably somewhere in the middle.

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