Main tenant at COREDO Muromachi Terrace opening September 27, 2019
Decision Made on the Development Outline for eslite spectrum nihonbashi, Japan’s First Store for the Taiwan Brand
A New Hub for Creative, Diverse Culture is Arriving in Nihonbashi

May 16, 2019
Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd.
The eslite spectrum Corporation
Yurindo Co., Ltd.

Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., a leading global real estate company headquartered in Tokyo, The eslite spectrum Corporation, headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, and Yurindo Co., Ltd., headquartered in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, announced today that they have finalized the basic details of the eslite spectrum nihonbashi store that will occupy the second floor of the COREDO Muromachi Terrace retail facility scheduled to open on Friday, September 27, 2019.

Press Release Summary

1. Eslite spectrum nihonbashi, the first store in Japan for this major Taiwan chain, will be established under the concept of “a cultural wonderland for living and reading.”
2. The store will be designed by leading Taiwanese architect Kris Yao.
3. The floor will consist of four zones: eslite bookstore (bookstore zone), stationery zone, select merchandise and workshop zone, and restaurant and food market zone.
4. The literature-oriented bookstore zone offers eslite’s unique reading culture
5. pproximately 50 Taiwanese brands will be available, including five making their debut in Japan, along with a selection of sophisticated merchandise, food products, and workshops from Japan and other countries.

• The eslite spectrum is a major Taiwanese hub for culture and information that began as a bookstore based on the concept of “Books, and Everything in Between” and has developed with a focus on creating a place where reading and cultural exchange can flourish. It has been chosen as one of the 14 “coolest department stores in the world” and “the best bookstore in Asia” (*1), and eslite spectrum nihonbashi will be the chain’s first store in Japan. Based on the concept of a “a cultural wonderland for living and reading,” the Nihonbashi location will draw on the unique sensibility of the eslite spectrum to organize and present culture passed down amid the history and lives of the district to become a platform for communicating creative, highly diverse culture and information.
• The space will be designed by leading Taiwanese architect Kris Yao, founder of KRIS YAO |ARTECH, and will express the history and culture of Nihonbashi through the aesthetic sensibility of the eslite spectrum based on the concepts of “the intersection of past and present” and “the fusion of old and new.”
• The space will be comprised of four zones: eslite bookstore (bookstore zone), stationery zone, select merchandise and workshop zone, and restaurant and food market zone. Along with eslite’s unique selection of books, plans call for products from close to 100 brands. Around 50 Taiwanese brands, including five with their first stores in Japan, and sophisticated merchandise, food products and workshops from Japan and other countries around the world will breathe new life into the Nihonbashi area.
• Experiential events, the signature feature of the eslite spectrum, will be held regularly with a rich variety of content, from talks by cultural figures to music events, art exhibitions and cooking demonstrations.
• Store operations will be handled by Yurindo Co., Ltd., which manages culture-oriented properties like HIBIYA CENTRAL MARKET (in Tokyo Midtown within Hibiya) that go beyond the bookstore category.

• 1 Eslite spectrum songyan store was named by the U.S. media network CNN in 2016 as one of the 14 “coolest department stores in the world.” Eslite’s bookstore in Dunnan was selected by the Asia edition of Time magazine in 2004 as “the best bookstore in Asia.”

Concept for eslite spectrum nihonbashi

The eslite spectrum is a Taiwan-based retail chain with a philosophy of linking culture and creativity based on a concept of “Books, and Everything in Between.”

As an urban culture creator, it works to create stores that draw on local characteristics and culture and that respect the spirit of those cities and interactions among people. The chain already has 49 stores in several countries and regions, including Taiwan, Hong Kong, Suzhou and Shenzhen, and each store has its own theme that incorporates its city’s culture and characteristics. The stores’ uniqueness has earned critical acclaim; eslite spectrum songyan store was named by the U.S. news network CNN in 2016 as one of the 14 “coolest department stores in the world,” and eslite bookstore dunnan store was selected by the Asia edition of Time magazine in 2004 as “the best bookstore in Asia.”

The eslite spectrum is taking its first step into Japan in Nihonbashi, a center of culture and commerce since the Edo period.

Along with closely adhering to the chain’s original principles, eslite spectrum nihonbashi will also draw on the eslite spectrum’s unique sensibility in order to organize and present culture passed down through Nihonbashi’s history and the lives of the people who have lived there. Playing the role of bridge connecting people with people, people with culture, and people with the environment, the store will be comprised of four zones on the theme of “a culture wonderland for living and reading” with a view to being a platform for communicating creative, highly diverse culture and information.

Spatial design of eslite spectrum nihonbashi

Leading Taiwanese architect Kris Yao designed the space. Yao has also designed eslite bookstore dunnan store and eslite spectrum suzhou, the first eslite spectrum store in China. eslite spectrum nihonbashi is Yao’s third collaboration with the chain.
Yao’s design of eslite spectrum nihonbashi is inspired by the history and culture of Nihonbashi and expresses “the intersection of past and present” and “the fusion of old and new.” The space interprets characteristics of traditional Japanese architecture through the aesthetic sensibility of the eslite spectrum.

Kris Yao

Born in Taipei, Taiwan in 1951. Graduated with a Bachelor of Architecture from Tunghai University in 1975 and a Master of Architecture from the University of California, Berkeley in 1978. Founder of KRIS YAO | ARTECH. He primarily works in Greater China.
Kris Yao’s architecture uses appropriate, innovative methods in line with land characteristics to create outstanding designs that fuse nature and culture. His works span a broad range of sectors and include office buildings, retail facilities, hotels, music halls, theaters, museums, train stations, educational facilities, housing, religious institutions, and urban planning.

Zones at eslite spectrum nihonbashi

Eslite spectrum nihonbashi is comprised of four zones: eslite bookstore (bookstore zone), stationery zone, select merchandise and workshop zone, and restaurant and food market zone. (Total store area of approximately 30,957 ft2 (approx. 2,876 m2))

(1) eslite (bookstore zone)

Since its establishment in 1989, eslite bookstore has created a reading culture from a unique perspective. eslite spectrum nihonbashi will have retail space that fully leverages the expertise of eslite bookstore, which is highly rated as a bookstore globally. The selection of books will be skillfully chosen by eslite bookstore and will center on Japanese titles, while there are also plans to stock foreign-language books, including Chinese titles, coordinated with special exhibits and displays. As for genres, the selection will pivot on literature and include a rich variety of art, design, business, travel and cooking books. An approximately 30-meter “literature corridor” in the space facing Chuo-dori avenue in particular will feature famous works of literature from around the world. There will be seating in front of the windows to allow customers to enjoy reading in a pleasant environment with natural light.
The plan also calls for special displays of “eslite recommends” (*2) selected by a team of experts that will be set up in the same manner as Taiwan stores to shine a spotlight on great books by time period, genre and author regardless of fame, and propose new reading-related insights from a unique perspective that differs from typical best seller rankings.
The store will also have the “forum” event space for new book releases, talks, film showings and other events.

• 2 “eslite recommends” is a project of eslite’s expert book selection team started in 1990. Eight to ten books are selected from various genres across time periods, from classic works to lesser known contemporary treasures, and presented as eslite’s monthly recommendations.

(2) Stationery zone

Leveraging the chain’s experience in introducing over 1,000 stationery brands from around the world to Taiwanese customers, eslite spectrum nihonbashi will also have a unique stationery zone. Starting with original stationery from eslite spectrum, the zone will have items that are perfect for home offices. There will be art supplies and paper products that are easy for novices to use as well, and other well-designed stationery products selected from the world’s stationery brands to help vividly accent people’s lives. Regular exhibitions and workshops related to stationery are also planned. A major stationery exhibition entitled “Ideal Stationery Fair” was held in Taiwan in 2017 and featured the display and sale of over 10,000 types of stationery products, including around 100 types of limited-edition products, along with workshops held by popular illustrators. The appeal of stationery will also be presented in Japan from a number of different angles.

(3) Select merchandise and workshop zone

The merchandise and workshop zone, which fuses traditional craft and contemporary design as selected by eslite spectrum, will feature sophisticated merchandise and food products selected from Japan, Taiwan and other parts of the world and will also host a variety of workshops.

Eslite spectrum expo, an incubation project that has discovered and supported many new design brands in Taiwan, will also be held at eslite spectrum nihonbashi. The project will select and highlight products, primarily from among Japanese and Taiwanese brands, and facilitate cultural exchange between Japan and Taiwan.

Eslite spectrum nihonbashi will also have DAYLILY, a popular lifestyle brand in Taiwan centering on Chinese medicinal herbs, YUAN, an herbal care brand, P. Seven Tea Perfume, a brand of perfumes made from Taiwanese tea, and Kuo Yuan Ye, a long-established chain of pastry stores with an over 150-year history. The lineup of tenants will provide customers with a tangible feel for Taiwanese culture.

Eslite spectrum nihonbashi will also host diverse workshops where visitors can experience and make genuine crafts; the hands-on glassblowing workshop held at the eslite spectrum songyan store will be recreated at eslite spectrum nihonbashi. Other stores like Nijiyura, L&Co., Creema STORE, meta mate and Kobajukkaten will offer products that draw on Japanese technologies and its spirit of craftsmanship and will run workshops on decorative dyeing, accessory design, metalworking and more.

(4) Restaurant and food market zone

This zone will have Fujin Tree, a popular restaurant in Taipei for Taiwanese cuisine, and Wang De Chuan tea salon, a long-established Taiwanese teahouse with over 150 years of history, the first locations for both in Japan, as well as Sarutahiko Coffee, the first in the Nihonbashi area, and THE ALLEY, a tea stand based in Taiwan. Customers can enjoy food and drinks as they read in a bright space along a terrace facing a covered plaza.
The food market zone, “eslite spectrum market,” is a collaboration with FOOD & COMPANY, a popular grocery store. The zone will feature an ensemble of traditional food ingredients and kitchen merchandise consistent with contemporary food culture and centering on Japan and Taiwan while also respecting seasonal variations. The adjacent COOKING STUDIO is scheduled to regularly hold cooking demonstrations that will introduce global food cultures, starting with Japan and Taiwan, along with food workshops.

Events

A major focus of eslite spectrum is proposing new forms of culture through experiential events, and it holds over 5,000 total workshops each year at its 49 stores. Events are broad-ranging and include talks by cultural figures, music events, art exhibitions, craft workshops and cooking demonstrations with chefs.
A series of special events is also scheduled to be held in connection with the opening of eslite spectrum nihonbashi.

Examples of events held at eslite spectrum in the past

Business scheme for eslite spectrum nihonbashi

Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd. and The eslite spectrum Corporation established The eslite spectrum MF Co., Ltd., a joint venture that owns the business license for the eslite spectrum in Japan.
Eslite spectrum nihonbashi will be managed by Yurindo Co., Ltd., the licensee, which operates culture-oriented properties like HIBIYA CENTRAL MARKET (in Tokyo Midtown within Hibiya) that go beyond the bookstore category.
Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd. has brought innumerable overseas brands to the retail complexes it manages, but this is the company’s first instance of joint investment in the license-holding company.

About the eslite spectrum

The eslite spectrum (Official company name: The eslite spectrum Corporation) works to create stores that leverage local characteristics and cultures and honor interactions between people in their local cities based on the concept of “Books, and Everything in Between.” Originating in Taiwan, the chain has 49 stores in a number of countries and regions, including Hong Kong, Suzhou and Shenzhen.

The company manages not only bookstores, but also a gallery, a performance hall, a movie theater, wine cellars and various other culture and content venues and is also involved in restaurants and the hotel business. Eslite spectrum has earned strong accolades overseas as well, with one of its stores being selected as one of the 14 “coolest department stores in the world.” eslite spectrum nihonbashi will be the first eslite spectrum in Japan.

About Yurindo

Founded in 1909, Yurindo carries out a wide range of business activities, including selling books, stationery and other products related to culture and education, marketing to government agencies, schools, hospitals and corporations, administering music classes and culture centers, operating libraries and community centers under the designated administrator system, and conducting publishing operations.
The chain has 56 stores in Tokyo, Kanagawa and Chiba. Its name comes from a Confucian saying that translates as “Virtue is not left to stand alone. He who practices it will have neighbors.”
In March 2018 it opened HIBIYA CENTRAL MARKET, a complex with a bar-restaurant, barber shop, clothing stores and more, in Tokyo Midtown Hibiya, as it continues to engage in new initiatives.

List of tenant brands

List of tenant brands(PDF:108KB)