Coffee, sandwiches, underwear, beer: a day in the life of Japan’s beloved konbini stores

Convenience stores are a neat and functional retail institution in Japan, where customers can access the daily essentials, from buying breakfast to paying bills

Kenji Yamamoto was unsure that his business would survive when he opened Japan’s first convenience store in a Tokyo neighbourhood in May 1974. The 7-Eleven outlet he ran with his wife stocked tinned food and detergents, items that most people had previously bought from supermarkets. His first sale was a pair of sunglasses.

Half a century later, it is not only the Yamamotos’ bright red and orange uniforms that have changed. Convenience stores – or konbini – are no longer a late-night alternative to early-closing supermarkets, but a retail institution that millions of Japanese people could not imagine life without.

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Coffee, sandwiches, underwear, beer: a day in the life of Japan’s beloved konbini stores

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