No Name Store

Handmade Shop With No Shopkeeper

Only in Japan. I noticed a very unique and interesting shop on my way home the other day. The sign on the door read, 'Please look freely,' although no one was minding the store. It looks as if there is sometimes someone there, making small fabric pouches or handmade cloths in a small studio space. In a shopkeeper's place, there is "Rusuban-kun," literally Mister-staying-at-home, sitting in a corner. His name tag also says, 'tsure wo sageshiteimasu,' or looking for a partner. There is a tin near the door where we can pay for any items we want to buy. In addition to handmade crafts, the store also sells handmade foods. There were a couple packs of handmade umeboshi when I went and it looks like there are sometimes fresh flowers. One corner has some paintings and small wood sculptures displayed, although a lot of these items weren't priced. Everything seemed covered with a film of dust, as if the owner is not in a hurry to sell things, and there are few customers. Still, this "honor system" type of shop is really rare to find in a normal Japanese city. It's like a larger scale version of the unattended vegetable stands with a coin box. I feel like it's even more rare in the US, but have seen something like those vegetable stands in small towns.