"Among craft, trade, shopkeeping, and agricultural families, all available hands are employed and very often it is the woman of the house who is the actual manager.
"It has always been traditional for women to work in this way, though family run businesses are inherited by the eldest son--or by an adopted son by marriage to a daughter and run the concern.
"Family Run businesses, "Mom and Pop" stores can stay open longer and maintain a lower profit margin because family members tend the shop, and there is little in the way of benefit packages or pensions or other overhead for other employees, who are often part time. Living in or over the shop makes it much easier for the family to maintain the household and business at the same time."
*DAUGHTER-IN-LAW
The hierarchies of a typical traditional shop are seen in the Fruit Shop video interview.
The oldest son's wife is up first to do the household and shop chores, and her voice is seldom heard until her mother-in-law 'retires' and (in traditional families) passes on the rice paddles to her. At this point, she is the unofficial household manager and can be the voice of the establishment.
*STORE
The reputation of a shop depends on the human relations maintained in the community by members of the family. Word of mouth keeps your customers, quality and innovation count a lot. Buying fruit in season, getting the first of the season still counts, though now with hothouses and good transport, fruits and vegetables of all kinds are available year round.
*GIFTS
*ART OF GIFT GIVING
A note from Corky White:
"Gift giving occurs at certain fixed times of the year, such as at mid summer and at New Year's when formal gifts are exchanged, particularly between students (or former students) and teachers, employee and employers, and among and within families. Such gifts aren't usually personal, but rather generic and the amount spent is carefully calibrated to the correct level for the relative status of giver and receiver. Of course at birthdays and other celebrations more personal gifts are given.
"Christmas is not a particularly important gift time, except for children, and for dating couples. At New Year's, children will be given their version of a "bonus", the Toshidama envelope of cash, and this may be spent or saved for a large item. Another custom is omiyage or the giving of souvenirs on return from a voyage as a kind of device for reintegrating the returnee. And of course, the gifts of very expensive fruit ($50 melons for example) or flowers or candy, may be purchased by a late and inebriated husband on his way home to his family.
"A typical grocery or greengrocer in Japan will pride itself on its beautiful, tasty fruit, and especially on seasonal appearances of perfect strawberries, juicy mikan (small, seedless tangerines like clementines), and of course, those gorgeous and expensive melons. Fruit is now also imported, but as with beef, the domestic product is generally preferred.
"Japanese prices, however, are extremely high for these prize fruits and even with government subsidies to keep agriculture local, farmers find it hard to make ends meet. Many farms have diversified away from traditional crops like rice and other staples to raise luxury fruits and vegetables, but this work is labor intensive, demanding, for example, the wrapping of individual strawberries as they open."
*OMIAI
Parents would attempt to match their child with their friend's or "friend of a friend's" child by arranging these initial meetings to break the ice, to see if any mutual interest developed.
*MRS. ISHII
The woman whose family owns and runs the fruit shop, interviewed by Shigeru in the video.
