vol.2 [Mitsui Fudosan x Food Reformers] Thinking about urban development in Nihonbashi Why is Mitsui Fudosan now taking on the challenge of creating a city with the theme of “food”?

Katsuhisa Nanao (right), general manager of the Nihonbashi Urban Development Promotion Department, and Yo Kakino (left), head of the department's business group.
&mog by Mitsui Fudosan is a one-stop platform that supports food business development, from concept design to urban implementation. The keyword for this project, which started in Nihonbashi this spring, is “Future food grown in the city.” Mitsui Fudosan is working with partner companies related to food to carry out a variety of activities to create new innovations. “&mog Kingdom” introduces monthly project events and the latest news. We will report on the new food trends starting in Nihonbashi!
Nihonbashi, an open-minded and enterprising city
Mitsui Fudosan, which has been involved in the revitalization of Nihonbashi, is taking on a new stage of urban development with food as the theme. This is an attempt to revitalize the city through support for the food industry. The idea was finally put into motion in 2024.
Katsuhisa Nanao, director of the Nihonbashi Urban Development Promotion Department, will lead the project. I have been working in Nihonbashi for 33 years. He has deep connections with various local communities, understands the character of the town, and has used that knowledge as inspiration for town development. “Nihonbashi is a city of merchants.When Tokugawa Ieyasu established the shogunate, merchants from all over the country gathered on this land where there was nothing and the city was built.That was the beginning.Big rivers were the key to water transportation, It also became the starting point of the Five Highways,” Nanao said.
Since then, Nihonbashi has become the center of Japan as a center of culture, economy, and commerce. The gathered merchants developed by learning and incorporating each other’s wisdom and techniques. “Nihonbashi’s roots have such an enterprising spirit. Also, from the Edo period to the present day, there are many companies that have kept an open mind and repeatedly innovated. These two spirits have created the city of Nihonbashi.”.
Getting back to the topic, why is the project based in Nihonbashi in the first place? “Nihonbashi is also the birthplace of the Mitsui Group. The origin of the Mitsui Group, Mitsui Echigoya Kimono Store, was founded in 1673. It celebrated its 350th anniversary last year. It has prospered as a center of finance and commerce since the Edo period. However, after the bubble burst, Nihonbashi rapidly lost its vitality.The public, private, and local communities came together to launch the Nihonbashi Revitalization Plan to restore its former vibrancy.”.

Fukutoku Shrine has been located in what is now Nihonbashi Muromachi since the Jogan era (859-876). It enshrines Ukanomitama no Mikoto, the god of five grains.
The first stage was the 2004 Coredo Nihonbashi Open. The second stage began with the opening of Coredo Muromachi 1 and 2 in 2014, and has raised the appeal of Nihonbashi with the four keywords of “neighborhood revitalization,” “industrial creation,” “regional coexistence,” and “water capital revitalization.”
“We began serious consideration in 1999 with the desire to bring back the vibrancy of Nihonbashi.We cannot do urban development alone. The government came together as one.The starting point for the Nihonbashi Revitalization Plan was ‘urban development’ with the help of many people like this,” says Nanao. Through trial and error, he tried everything he could think of, such as planting flowers on Chuo-dori, building a tourist information center, improving the docks in Nihonbashi, and running a free tour bus.
“We have worked on the redevelopment of Kasumigaseki in the past and Shiodome in the newer areas, but redevelopment requires a dynamic theme that can attract demand throughout the city. It is meaningless unless it continues into the future. This gave rise to the idea of supporting the development of an industry that would help solve problems not only in Japan but around the world.Since Nihonbashi is an area with a rich history and spirituality, we wanted to revive and create old things. We proceeded with development with this in mind.
Since the Nihonbashi Revitalization Plan was launched, the city’s hustle and bustle has gradually returned. Under these circumstances, one of the next things Mitsui Fudosan worked on was the creation of a life science industry. Nihonbashi, which prospered as a drug wholesaler district during the Edo period, is still home to many pharmaceutical-related companies. Taking advantage of its location, the city has begun activities to support the creation of new industries in the life science field through collaboration between industry, academia, and government. “We wanted to promote open innovation by providing a place where people in the life sciences industry could gather and an opportunity to encourage interaction,” Nanao recalls. As this progressed smoothly, the next step was to promote the creation of a space business industry.


At the first “&mog by Mitusiudosan” meetup held at Yaesu Midtown, startup companies aiming to expand overseas and companies wanting to support them gathered together to exchange opinions.
Supporting industry creation in the food field, which faces global social issues
After the completion of the second stage, the third stage of the Nihonbashi Revitalization Plan, which will take over from 2019, has begun. That’s when the idea of creating a town with food as its theme was born.
“It’s only in the past year that the theme of ‘food’ has taken shape,” says Yo Kakino of the Nihonbashi Urban Development Promotion Department. His previous job was as a broadcaster, and he has a unique background, and is a working team leader who manages projects with his light footwork. “Up until now, in the fields of life science and space, we have worked within the framework of ‘providing places’ and ‘creating opportunities,’ creating places where people from those industries can gather and creating opportunities for those who gather to interact with each other. We will implement these initiatives in food, but we also want to focus on supporting business development,” says Kakino.
“As we progressed with the ‘industrial creation’ that began in the second stage, we became aware of the need to contribute to solving future social issues. We focused on the food we have. We believe it is important to provide support in areas where we can create new innovations and avoid crises.”
&mog by Mitusiudosan embodies this idea. At the first meetup in March of this year, a discussion was held that brought together food startups and major corporations to pave the way for global expansion. Mitsui Fudosan does not develop food businesses. It connects partners with strengths and provides support in various areas such as product development, business design, and market acquisition. Mr. Kakino described this as “accompanying people.”
“We are looking at the whole of Nihonbashi as a platform, and are looking for ways to contribute using the connections and resources we currently have.Since we are in the real estate industry, we can listen to the needs of a wide range of customers, listen to their needs, and connect with them. Through this activity, we would like to see how we can be involved in supporting industry,” said Kakino. “This was not possible 10 years ago, but it is an attempt that is now possible,” Nanao reflects. As we have carried out revitalization projects for over 20 years, we have carefully listened to the voices of local businesses and deepened our relationships with them. With the network in place and many people trusting him, he says, “the time is ripe.”
Along the way, Nanao has also worked hard to maintain the cityscape of Nihonbashi. It is said that he has continued to pour his love into the city, such as by cooperating with the creation of landscape guidelines for the city block, and working to improve the aesthetics of alleys and place lanterns. “There are about 10 alleys in Nihonbashi that are remnants of the Uogashi period.I went there and asked if I could lay stone pavements on your land,” he says with a laugh. Through these activities, he was able to get to know the shop owners, who have unique characteristics. “Such accumulation is the driving force behind our current efforts,” he says.
“I believe that urban development is not just about building buildings, but about creating people’s lives,” says Kakino.
Generate innovation by lending our strength to the creation of the food industry. One way to do this is to start from the perspective of real estate. I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of changes this unprecedented experiment will bring about in the future.
text:Jun Okamoto
photo:Yoshiko Yoda