The economics of this fascinate me. There is absolutely no way selling paper copies of a single book (even/especially if it changes daily: what happens to unsold stock?) can cover the costs of ground floor retail store rental in the Ginza plus apparently engaging boutique branding agencies to do in depth explorations of a logo complete with a custom typeface.<p>For reference, a standard <i>bunko</i> paperback in Japan costs on the order of ¥600 (US$4), maybe 2-3x that if you splash out on the hardcover.
I would imagine there is a marketing budget covering the losses. Also, maybe the retail store owner is making them a favor regarding the rent, as the space can be cleared out quickly if they find a new tenant able to pay the full cost. And maybe the owner is a book lover.
Its reminding me very much of NYC's Chelsea district. Probably inspired by that fine arts culture, which is a little odd for Tokyo, as I've always found it have more subtle aesthetic sensibilities than New York.
Another interesting building nearby, with very small art galleries and independent shopowners, and a manually-operated elevator from some hundred years ago:<p><a href="https://www.nippon.com/en/guide-to-japan/gu900067/ginza’s-okuno-building-a-slice-of-tokyo’s-early-twentieth-century.html" rel="nofollow">https://www.nippon.com/en/guide-to-japan/gu900067/ginza’s-ok...</a><p><a href="https://www.dennisherman.com/blog/2024/2/26/okuno-a-ghost-of-tokyo-past" rel="nofollow">https://www.dennisherman.com/blog/2024/2/26/okuno-a-ghost-of...</a><p>Okuno Building