What can we do now to create a city that creates new value?
At NTT Urban Development, we are sincerely addressing this question.
We have launched a new initiative.
It is an attempt to anticipate social changes and carve out a path to the future through design.
Three keywords derived from our "design vision"
About "Community," "History and Culture," and "Life and Work"
A dialogue between leading figures from various fields.
We will publish the details here.
The first installment of this commemorative series is a conversation on "community" between Tomoaki Kageyama, owner of Kurumido Coffee, who is working to create communities rooted in everyday life, and Yohei Sadoshima, editor and CEO of Cork, which manages online fan communities. They explore the types of communities that are needed today and the possibilities for new urban development.
Tomoaki Kageyama
(Kageyama Tomoaki)
Yohei Sadojima
(Yohei Sadoshima)
The first installment of this commemorative series is a conversation on "community" between Tomoaki Kageyama, owner of Kurumido Coffee, who is working to create communities rooted in everyday life, and Yohei Sadoshima, editor and CEO of Cork, which manages online fan communities. They explore the types of communities that are needed today and the possibilities for new urban development.
Tomoaki Kageyama
Owner of Kurumido Coffee and Kurumido Cafe. Born in Nishi-Kokubunji, Tokyo in 1973. After working at McKinsey & Company, he participated in the founding of a venture capital firm, and then founded Festina Rente Co., Ltd. In 2008, he built the multi-generational shared house Mage Nishi-Kokubunji on the land of his childhood home, and opened Kurumido Coffee on the first floor. In March 2017, he opened Kurumido Cafe in Kokubunji, and in July he opened the learning space "Kotojuku." His books include "Slow, Hurry" (Yamato Shobo). http://kurumed.jp/
Yohei Sadoshima
Editor and CEO of Cork Co., Ltd. Born in Tokyo in 1979. Joined the editorial department of Kodansha's Weekly Morning in 2002, where he was responsible for works such as Takehiko Inoue's Vagabond, Norifusa Mita's Dragon Zakura, and Moyoco Anno's Working Man. In 2012, he founded the author agency Cork, and helped develop Chuya Koyama's Space Brothers into a mega-hit that has sold over 16 million copies, leading to its adaptation into an anime TV series and a live-action film. He is also responsible for serializing novels such as Keiichiro Hirano's Matinee no Owari ni. http://corkagency.com
A new community connected by place and content
A new community connected by place and content
──Please tell us about your respective activities and your efforts related to the "community."
──Please tell us about your respective activities and your efforts related to the "community."
Kageyama
Since 2008, I have been running a cafe called "Kurumido Coffee" in Nishikokubunji, Tokyo, as well as a shared house in the same building. In March 2017, I opened my second store, "Kurumido Cafe." I hope that through running the cafe, I can create new connections with Nishikokubunji, where I was born and raised, and help develop an interesting town.
Sado Island
I originally worked as a manga editor at a publishing company, but in 2012 I went independent and founded Cork Co., Ltd., an agency that supports authors and creators. As the publishing industry shrinks with the changing times, I thought about what functions were needed now, and the idea of community emerged. At Cork, we are working to secure revenue sources that traditional publishers have not had, with three pillars: publishing for authors, selling merchandise related to their works, and a community of fans of the authors.
Kageyama
I think the reason Kurumido Coffee has been in business for nine years is because of the fans who frequent the shop. They don't just come to drink coffee, they also feel something for the way we, the staff, behave and act. We call this the "specific majority," but this foundation of relationships with thousands of people not only supports the shop financially, but also leads to a sense of security and joy for the people involved.
On the other hand, I first became interested in community not in an economic context, but from the perspective of the living environment, such as lifestyle and living. In a word, it is a "place to belong," and I think it is a different perspective from the business-oriented approach that Sadoshima is taking.
Sado Island
As for a place to belong, people today don't have one. In the past, when local communities were everything, everyone had a place to belong. However, nowadays, with underground websites even existing in elementary and junior high schools, it's hard to know who to trust. In this climate, for example, there's a fan club for Chuya Koyama's Space Brothers (*1), where people who would normally have no contact with each other, from women in their 20s to men in their 50s, can talk honestly and become friends through the work. Going forward, companies that can create such communities will likely win the competition. In fact, companies that have placed low cost and convenience at the heart of their services are rapidly losing ground.
(※1) Chuya Koyama's "Space Brothers" official website https://koyamachuya.com
(※1) Chuya Koyama's "Space Brothers" official website
https://koyamachuya.com
Kageyama
The way I see it, Sadoshima's approach seems to be using the community as a means to a different end. As a consequence of his approach to managing and utilizing the community for the sake of his work, it seems to me that he expects certain specific behaviors from participants, such as using services.
──Each of you has a different approach to the community, but is this really an incompatible area?
──Each of you has a different approach to the community, but is this really an incompatible area?
Sado Island
This may be due to differences in occupation and position. Kurumido Coffee has a "place" first, but we have "content" first. That's why we are absolutely the same.
Kageyama
There's also the difference between focusing on the homogeneity of a community or on its diversity. People who like "Space Brothers" can be considered friends, so to speak, but a homogeneous community, and people who don't like it can be considered not friends. But rather than basing my work on similarities and homogeneity, I'm looking forward to the possibility of people who at first glance have nothing in common interacting with each other. After all, a cafe is a place where all kinds of people mix together, even if you don't choose them.
Sado Island
Homogeneity or heterogeneity is a big factor, but in my case, there may also be a difference in the fact that I'm creating a community online. Social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook are now too open and have become unsafe spaces, so it's important to deliberately create a closed space. I believe that by first creating a space where homogeneous people can interact safely and then adding diverse people to that, diversity can be guaranteed within. Conversely, if a real space is too homogeneous, it can easily become cult-like, so a diverse space may be easier to broaden its reach.
RELATED PROJECTS
Harajuku Station Front Project
(Scheduled to open in 2020 / Design: Takenaka Corporation + Toyo Ito & Associates, Architects)
NTT Urban Development is planning to create a place in front of Harajuku Station called "A Hangout Spot Spinning into the Future," where people can interact and make unprecedented discoveries and experiences.
In 2020, Harajuku will evolve even further as a place to present new culture and creativity to the world.
Harajuku Station Front Project
(Scheduled to open in 2020 / Design: Takenaka Corporation + Toyo Ito & Associates, Architects)
NTT Urban Development is planning to create a place in front of Harajuku Station called "A Hangout Spot Spinning into the Future," where people can interact and make unprecedented discoveries and experiences.
In 2020, Harajuku will evolve even further as a place to present new culture and creativity to the world.
Tomoaki Kageyama
(Kageyama Tomoaki)
Owner of Kurumido Coffee and Kurumido Cafe. Born in Nishi-Kokubunji, Tokyo in 1973. After working at McKinsey & Company, he participated in the founding of a venture capital firm, and then founded Festina Rente Co., Ltd. In 2008, he built the multi-generational shared house Mage Nishi-Kokubunji on the land of his childhood home, and opened Kurumido Coffee on the first floor. In March 2017, he opened Kurumido Cafe in Kokubunji, and in July he opened the learning space "Kotojuku." His books include "Slow, Hurry" (Yamato Shobo). http://kurumed.jp/
Yohei Sadojima
(Yohei Sadoshima)
Editor and CEO of Cork Co., Ltd. Born in Tokyo in 1979. Joined the editorial department of Kodansha's Weekly Morning in 2002, where he was responsible for works such as Takehiko Inoue's Vagabond, Norifusa Mita's Dragon Zakura, and Moyoco Anno's Working Man. In 2012, he founded the author agency Cork, and helped develop Chuya Koyama's Space Brothers into a mega-hit that has sold over 16 million copies, leading to its adaptation into an anime TV series and a live-action film. He is also responsible for serializing novels such as Keiichiro Hirano's Matinee no Owari ni. http://corkagency.com