It has been revealed that the Cool Japan Organization (Overseas Demand Development Support Organization), a public-private fund, will invest up to 700 million yen in the "Japan Food Town Project." This project involves numerous Japanese small and medium-sized food service companies opening stores in Singapore's bustling Orchard district. This was reported by NNA, which distributes economic information on Asia.
The Cool Japan Organization, together with the Japan Overseas Food Venture Promotion Association (JAOF) and private companies supporting the project, will establish a joint venture company in Singapore. They plan to set up and operate "Japan Food Town" (tentative name) on the 4th floor of the Isetan Orchard store. The total investment for the project is estimated at 1 billion yen, but they plan to increase this by recruiting "supporting companies" such as cooking utensil, beverage, and seasoning manufacturers.
Participating in the plan will be 15 to 20 food service venture companies affiliated with JAOF. The project will publicly recruit small and medium-sized enterprises with proven track records in Japan, including those offering soba, udon, ramen, rice bowls, yakitori, and Japanese-style Western dishes like omurice. Tenants will be decided by around the end of March 2015, aiming for an opening in October of the same year. The first-year sales target is 3 to 4 billion yen.
Regarding this investment, a Cool Japan Organization spokesperson explained, "All tenant outlets will operate as company-owned stores, enabling us to provide authentic Japanese flavors and hospitality." They added, "While securing local Japanese ingredients and staffing for service is challenging, having multiple companies together allows for efficiency and cost reduction."
Singapore will serve as a model case, with plans to explore similar business expansion in other Asian regions.
