Behind the Scene: MiseNoMa—Why I decided to choose the inefficient path

Is it possible to recreate a physical store-like experience without having the actual store and having a long distance? No, I am not talking about online shops. Other experiences you enjoy at your favorite local boutiques. To recreate the experience, I decided to take the inefficient path. Find out what it is and why.

I’m Satoko, a Bespoke Artisanal Experience Coordinator and the founder of “KoLe SHIKOKU, Japan.” I’m a bridge connecting you with heritage craft artisans in Shikoku, Japan. As a Bespoke Artisanal Experience Coordinator, I coordinate for you to purchase artisan-made items, place customized or bespoke orders to our collaborating artisans, visit artisans, and hire us for your exhibition, events, seminars, workshops, and so on. Every case is personalized to your needs and preferences.

Which “physical store-like experience” I am talking about?

It’s having a casual small chat with your favorite boutique owner or staff.

It’s as casual as popping in because you happened to walk by the store, saying “hi,” and being gone without buying anything. 

For the last couple of years, I’ve been frustrated by not having physical boutiques in the cities where I want to introduce our services, not for the sake of sales but for the following reasons.

What I miss the most is the experience of having conversations with people who drop by the restaurant where I used to work in Dublin, Ireland. 

Some are regulars just swinging by, and some are delivery people who have never dined at the restaurant. The layers of the little chat made me sure to feel “I got you!” whenever the next time they came into the restaurant to eat. 

The sense of security and community of the “Hey! I know you” expressions on our faces we exchanged when we saw each other on the street.    

I kept thinking about how to recreate it while you stay in your country and I stay in Japan. 

I have taken a severe amount of time to consider how I can create an environment for you and me to communicate casually with fewer hassles.  

 How do I recreate it?

The first idea that popped into my head was “metaverse,” yet I shook my head as soon as the idea arose. It had to be a tool that everyone could easily use.

“Zoom,” I thought.
Still, there were more things I needed to solve. 

“How do I make a ‘no booking required’ environment, as well as make sure it will be a one-on-one chat?”

“Do I want the Zoom chat URL to open publicly or keep it make something by registration only?” 

After a few more concerns and preparation, I decided to launch,

“MiseNoMa ~viertual store counter~”

• No booking required
• No hard sell
• First come first serve
• One-on-one casual communication via Zoom.

It’s open for 4 hours from Friday to Sunday if you are in America and Europe.

Maximum nine times (a “Fri-Sun” = 1 time) per season. 

I’ll be online in front of my web camera and microphone for 4 hours 3 days per week. 

I’d like you to drop by for…

• Questions popped up in your mind while you were looking at our social media
• Just curious about looking at featured items of the season
• It’s happened to be your coffee break, let’s have coffee and a chat
• Just check in to see how I am doing

 Why is it important?

On the efficiency scale, MiseNoMa is NOT efficient. I have to be at my desk for the promised four hours, and for the next few days, I’ll be wondering if anybody is waiting in the Zoom waiting room.  

But it is essential for me to take the inefficient path for your better benefit. 

Because of the nature of my profession, the more I know about or am familiar with you, the better the chance I have of executing your inquiry in a way that is suitable for your preferences with less time. 

If you consult with me about your parents’ 40th marriage anniversary, and it is your first time talking with me, I might need to ask you gazillions of questions about your family and parents. On the other hand, if we know each other for weeks, months, or years through MiseNoMa chat, we can skip that part. 

If I already know you hate green, I can eliminate anything green from my suggestion. 

You might have noticed that MiseNoMa is NOT an opportunity for me to sell you something at the chat. It is for “when the time ever comes that I could be your help professionally.” 

It is an opportunity for you to judge whether I could be the person to serve you.

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That is why I decided to launch MiseNoMa.
If you like the idea, check out the MiseNoMa page of our website. 

Click here to view the page.

I’m looking forward to meeting you at MiseNoMa soon.

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