I want to export this to the rest of the world!
The japanese service culture is amazing. Me and just about everyone I have talked to agree that the service in Japan is amazing. Actually, you notice it even more if you speak some Japanese, since many japanese are shy around foreigners since because of the language barrier that exists in approximately 96.5% of all foreigner-meets-japanese-person-cases. Those who have travelled back to Europe after having lived in Japan for some time are also very much in agreement that service back in Europe sucks bigtime.
An example: I was recently in London, and going into just about any shop or restaurant would get me a sullen “Whaddayawanthere?” look from someone working there. Not because I looked like a homeless person (I didn’t), but rather because (and this is my own humble opinion) me being there would lead to them having to work.
Let’s fly ourselves back to Japan, and we will have cheerful service everywhere, even in the sloppiest fast-food places (say Yoshinoya, Matsuya and Sukiya). At McDonalds, a large portion of the staff greets you as you walk into the place (unless there’s too much people). They smile at you, speak in a clear voice (though in Japanese, of course) and give you a fresh and hot (!) burger, without fail. In most other countries, this only happens if it’s your lucky day.
Another example, and this is one that I would love to see back in Sweden. At a clothes store in Shibuya, today, as I was paying for what I had bought, the sales clerk asked me (translated from Japanese):
“Excuse me for being rude, but would the honored customer like me to put all his things in one bag?”
This, coupled with, in many stores, the person handling your sale will often carry the bag for you and hand it over at the door of the store, while bowing deeply. See if you can beat that, everyone in Europe!
April 25th, 2007 at 3:14
Well, why don’t you stay in Japan then? I’m sure you’ll be able to find a job if you look around. Anyhow, I totally agree with you. I have never been (or will probably never go) to a plave where the level of service mindness is higher than in Japan. (I wonder how our fellas at IKEA will cope in the long run…)
April 25th, 2007 at 16:10
Sure I could find a job. But could I find a job I would find interesting, challenging, and rewarding? I’m not so sure about that.
Maybe in the future, because I’m sure I will return one day. Maybe the day I hear someone in Sweden say “Sorry for being rude, but would the honored customer like…” (and meaning it), I will immediately leave for Japan to see what level the service-mindedness is at there.
What if there is only a finite amount of service-mindedness to go around in the world, and Japan has gotten most of it? That means that (due to population size differences) Sweden could have the same level of service-mindedness as Japan, without the Japanese level decreasing by more than 6 or 7 %. And then we can live on happily forever after, in Sweden or Japan, and the rest of the world be damned!
July 24th, 2007 at 18:39
The service level is simply amazing. I remember from my all to short visit to japan (5 weeks) the amazing service level. I remember buying a bottle of wine in an apartement store, the wrapping for this product when the staff was finished looked better than the christmas wrappings at the NK departement store here in Stockholm (and mind you, the NK wrapping is very nice compared to many other stores).
Or how all of the staff drop everything they do and say “Irraishaimase” when you enter a store, making you feel just that little bit of extra welcome.
Or how the staff always look happy, give you smiles and immaculately count your change. In fact, I never ever checked I had gotten the correct change after a couple of days. I knew I had.
And yet, somehow, you never get the feeling of being pressured into buying anything, as you can be with overly “helpful” staff in Europe.
July 25th, 2007 at 15:09
Exactly right. I lived in Munich in Germany for a while, and they had this strangely Soviet-esque system in clothes tores there. If you were walking around, cheking stuff, someone would come and try to “help” you, without being asked for it, even without indication of needing help. If you then made any sign of liking what you tried, they would almost tear the clothes out of your hands, give you a little note with their number on (for commission purposes), and then run off with the clothes to the cashier. Then, to get your clothes, you would have to stand in three lines - one to give them your little notes, one to pay, and one to get your actual clothes. Bizarre.