@Shotgunner51 @TaiShang @cnleio @Edison Chen ---- you know what this means right? Time to visit Ningbo in the near future, lol ! 
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An organization designed to promote Japanese culture overseas will be pumping billions of yen into a "Japan Mall" in a pro-Japan Chinese city as its first venture.
The Japanese shopping center in Ningbo, Zhejiang province, is the largest of the first three business projects to be supported by "Cool Japan," a fund run by public and private entities, officials said April 21.
In total, the projects will be worth approximately 65 billion yen ($633 million), with the organization planning to invest more than 10 billion yen by the end of this year.
The Cool Japan promotion organization was established last November to administer a fund to facilitate the growth of cultural Japanese exports, including anime, video games, music and food. It has amassed 30 billion yen from the government and 8.5 billion yen from financial organizations and other private businesses.
The Abe administration aims to turn Japanese culture into a profitable business model by making it "cool" in overseas markets. It also hopes to improve the global image of Japan.
By bearing a part of the investment expenses, the Cool Japan effort seeks to ease the reluctance Japanese businesses have toward operating abroad, where risks are much greater than in Japan.
The organization will be shelling out 10 billion yen of the 56 billion yen required for the opening of the shopping mall in Ningbo. Details, including when the mall will open, are still undecided.
The mall will be operated by one of the largest department store operators of Japan, the H2O Retailing Corp. of Osaka, which runs the Hankyu and Hanshin department stores, in cooperation with local general trading companies.
Japanese-run shopping malls in China are not new. But this Japan Mall aims to stand out from the others by housing Japanese clothing stores, anime theaters and other businesses that promise a uniquely Japanese experience.
According to the Japanese economy ministry, Ningbo, a city with a population of about 7.6 million, is undergoing a massive urban development project. Despite rising Japan-China tensions and anti-Japanese demonstrations across China over the Senkaku Islands territorial disputes, Ningbo seems to have remained a relatively pro-Japanese region--a factor the organization considered in choosing the city for introducing Japanese culture into the country.
The second largest project will be in Southeast Asia, where the organization is slated to invest about 5 to 10 billion yen, together with Tokyo satellite TV network SKY Perfect JSAT Corp., to create a TV company that broadcasts Japanese shows, films and anime. It will start operations in Indonesia and later spread throughout the region.
Singapore, meanwhile, will be the location of the third project, a Japanese restaurant district in which the organization will invest approximately 1 billion yen.
Chinese shoppers to get a 'Cool Japan' mall in Ningbo - AJW by The Asahi Shimbun
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An organization designed to promote Japanese culture overseas will be pumping billions of yen into a "Japan Mall" in a pro-Japan Chinese city as its first venture.
The Japanese shopping center in Ningbo, Zhejiang province, is the largest of the first three business projects to be supported by "Cool Japan," a fund run by public and private entities, officials said April 21.
In total, the projects will be worth approximately 65 billion yen ($633 million), with the organization planning to invest more than 10 billion yen by the end of this year.
The Cool Japan promotion organization was established last November to administer a fund to facilitate the growth of cultural Japanese exports, including anime, video games, music and food. It has amassed 30 billion yen from the government and 8.5 billion yen from financial organizations and other private businesses.
The Abe administration aims to turn Japanese culture into a profitable business model by making it "cool" in overseas markets. It also hopes to improve the global image of Japan.
By bearing a part of the investment expenses, the Cool Japan effort seeks to ease the reluctance Japanese businesses have toward operating abroad, where risks are much greater than in Japan.
The organization will be shelling out 10 billion yen of the 56 billion yen required for the opening of the shopping mall in Ningbo. Details, including when the mall will open, are still undecided.
The mall will be operated by one of the largest department store operators of Japan, the H2O Retailing Corp. of Osaka, which runs the Hankyu and Hanshin department stores, in cooperation with local general trading companies.
Japanese-run shopping malls in China are not new. But this Japan Mall aims to stand out from the others by housing Japanese clothing stores, anime theaters and other businesses that promise a uniquely Japanese experience.
According to the Japanese economy ministry, Ningbo, a city with a population of about 7.6 million, is undergoing a massive urban development project. Despite rising Japan-China tensions and anti-Japanese demonstrations across China over the Senkaku Islands territorial disputes, Ningbo seems to have remained a relatively pro-Japanese region--a factor the organization considered in choosing the city for introducing Japanese culture into the country.
The second largest project will be in Southeast Asia, where the organization is slated to invest about 5 to 10 billion yen, together with Tokyo satellite TV network SKY Perfect JSAT Corp., to create a TV company that broadcasts Japanese shows, films and anime. It will start operations in Indonesia and later spread throughout the region.
Singapore, meanwhile, will be the location of the third project, a Japanese restaurant district in which the organization will invest approximately 1 billion yen.
Chinese shoppers to get a 'Cool Japan' mall in Ningbo - AJW by The Asahi Shimbun
