In recent years, the number of tourists visiting Japan from overseas (inbound tourism) has increased dramatically.
The number of visitors to Japan, which was approximately 6.79 million in 2009, exceeded 10 million in 2013 and grew to over 31 million in 2018.
Seeing this as a great opportunity, various industries are actively working to capture inbound demand.

Furthermore, according to the "Survey on Consumption Trends of Foreign Visitors to Japan (July-September 2018)" conducted by the Japan Tourism Agency, the most common answer among foreigners regarding "what they expected to do before visiting Japan" was "to eat Japanese food" (71.5%). Now that representative Japanese dishes such as sushi and tempura can be enjoyed all over the world, it seems that there is a growing expectation among foreigners to enjoy the authentic taste when they visit Japan.

Zensho Group is also working to create an environment where foreign customers can enjoy their meals comfortably.
This time, we will introduce Zensho Group's initiatives for inbound tourism.

1. Multilingual menu

We are working to make our menus multilingual, so that even customers who don't understand Japanese can easily choose what they want from our extensive menu and place their orders smoothly.

Sukiya
At Sukiya, where you can enjoy Japan's national dish, "gyudon" (Gyudon), at an affordable price, scanning the QR code on the back of the menu book will display the menu in English, Chinese, and Korean.

Hama-Sushi
Hama-Sushi Sushi, a 100-yen sushi chain that focuses not only on sushi but also on side dishes such as ramen and sweets, has touch panels for ordering that support Japanese, English, and Chinese. In addition, Pepper, the humanoid robot that handles reception and seating at the storefront, is trilingual, supporting Japanese, English, and Chinese through both voice and screen display.

2. Introduction of mobile payment services

To improve convenience for Chinese customers, who make up a large proportion of foreign tourists, we have introduced Alipay, China's largest mobile payment service, and WeChat Pay, the most popular smartphone social media app payment service in China. We plan to increase the number of stores where these services can be used in the future.

■ Participating stores
Sukiya, Hama-Sushi, Hanaya Yohei, Big Boy (excluding some stores)

3. How to Dine video

When you go to a store for the first time, you might feel a little anxious about things like how to order or how to pay. This is especially true if you're in a country where you don't speak the language.
Therefore, Sukiya, Hama-Sushi, and Hanaya Yohei have uploaded "How to Dine" videos on their websites in English and Chinese, explaining the entire process from entering the restaurant to ordering and paying the bill.

4. Free Wi-Fi

Coco's 's, a family restaurant chain that focuses on hamburgers and offers a menu featuring seasonal ingredients from main courses to desserts, provides free Wi-Fi at all 53 of its locations in the Tokyo metropolitan area.
You can easily register using your Google or Facebook account, making your mealtimes more enjoyable and comfortable.

With the number of visitors to Japan expected to increase further in anticipation of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, efforts to attract inbound tourists are becoming increasingly important.
We will continue our efforts to ensure that every meal you enjoy at Zensho Group restaurant helps you appreciate the charm of Japan.