In addition to a bookstore and café space, it will also have miscellaneous goods and a craft beer brewery. Trinome Shoten, a complex facility with these various functions, will open in Urahoro Town, Tokachi, Hokkaido, on Saturday, October 28, 2023.

The manager of the store moved to Urahorocho, saying, "I want to create a place where I can encounter books in the east of Hokkaido! and moved to Urahoro. At that place, you can read books in the café space, take a break, have a drink or a light meal, spend time doing nothing, or have a freshly brewed beer... In this issue, we will introduce the story behind the "creation of a place with books".

A general store project that began with the connections we have built in Urahoro Town

Urahoro Town is located between Obihiro and Kushiro, and has a population of about 4,200. The town has a thriving primary industry with agriculture, dairy farming, forestry, and fishing. In the urban area where Urahoro Station is located, there are restaurants, supermarkets, home centers, electronics stores, and other stores that support people's daily lives.

The town is characterized by its long-standing commitment to activities that connect the community to the next. Uraboro Style," a town development program centered on children growing up in the community, is a typical example of such efforts. Recently, the town has also attracted attention for the topic that the number of young people in their 20s and 30s, including UI-turners, moving into the area has exceeded those moving out.

The town of Urahoro as seen from the Urahoro Forest Park Peace Tower. The city is laid out in a grid pattern.

The "Zakka-ya Project" started from the connections built in Urahoro Town. The company that launched the project is Repelience Corporation, which operates the guesthouse "Hahaha Hostel" and the employment promotion portal site "Tsutsuuraura". The project has been providing and managing opportunities to connect local people and jobs and enjoy life in Urahoro, but the desire to increase the number of places where people can stay more casually in Urahoro Town grew, and the project was set in motion.

From left to right: Repelience's Komatsu, Kudo (that's me), Fujimaki, and Takeda

Fujimaki, who joined us in April 2023, is the manager of our newly opened general store. Fujimaki is 23 years old and originally from Tokyo. She had a dream of "living in Hokkaido" and "opening a bookstore. When she visited Urahoro for the first time, she had a gut feeling that "Oh, it would be great to have a bookstore in this town.

Mizuki Fujimaki, manager

Urahoro has many people who encourage "I want to do it! and people naturally bring you into their circle, and you work together with others to take on challenges. Although more and more stores are gradually closing their shutters, the number of new challenges is increasing as well.

Fujimaki, who participated in the opening event of the Hahaha Hostel in 2021, visited this town many times during the two years leading up to the present. As he got to know the town, he gradually began to think that he might be able to realize what he wanted to do here.

Event "Bookstore Whirlwind" held at Hahaha Hostel in March 2022

Fujimaki held the event and thought, "Maybe I can take my first step in this town! he thought.