I participated in an hourcation, a journey to explore the possibilities of local business.

Eh, are you still wasting your time in Minami?

I apologize for the extreme introduction

My name is Goto and I work in the Web Services Division, living in Minami, Osaka

 

That's right. Despite the excitement I had at the beginning, I actually live in the Minami area

Just to be clear, I love cities

If you live in a city and suddenly decide you want to go to a certain place (such as a famous chain restaurant), searching on Google Maps will usually reveal that the restaurant within a 10-30 minute walk .

This is almost a miracle . When I lived in my hometown, normal to have to drive 30 minutes or even 1-2 hours (although I quite like this travel time).

 

In other words, I have now experienced both urban and rural life to some extent, and have a fairly neutral perspective on the differences between the city and the countryside.

have a bit of a countryside complex, and it makes me a little angry when I think, "I'm a city boy born in the city, and I spent my youth in Umeda or Minami." )

 

I grew up in the countryside and now live in the city, but I suddenly received a call offering me the opportunity to participate in a program called "hourcation."

 

This time I went on an "hourcation" in Miyoshi City, Tokushima Prefecture, so I'd like to frankly share with you from my own perspective about its appeal, the potential of local businesses the appeal of living in the countryside !

If you are interested in local businesses and rural life, please take a look

Tokushima x Workation! What is Workation?

▲The view around the Beyond Shikoku office in Miyoshi City, Tokushima Prefecture

First of all, what is an hourcation? This program is planned and run by the Tokushima branch of ANA Akindo Co., Ltd

The summary is provided below in the form of a quote

What is workcation?

Now that attention is being focused on "lifestyles" that aim for "SDGs," "spiritual richness," and "well-being," we aim to "promote the appeal of Tokushima Prefecture" and create "new connections and new flows of people" through workation, based on the concept of "people attracting people" that attracted people to Tokushima

We have prepared programs based on the following themes so that you can experience Tokushima's charms of "nature," "food," "history," "culture," and "SDGs"

Source: Tokushima Prefecture Workcation Program

To summarize briefly, workcation is a project that allows you to experience the charm of Tokushima Prefecture, but my impression was that the program included many opportunities to learn not only about the good things about Tokushima, but also about the charms of the people who live in Tokushima

More details will be provided later

Also, in this article, rather than providing a detailed report on the workcation event, I would like to share the insights and realizations I gained from the workcation

If you want to see the atmosphere of an hourcation in more detail, please check out the Vlog of Beyond members participating in an hourcation that has been uploaded to our official YouTube channel

Beyond also offers a workation system

For more details about the system and testimonials, please see the article below

I went to Mt. Koya for my first solo workday [Seijoshin-in & Muryoko-in]

The flow of workcation

The workcation lasts for a total of three days, and each day has been carefully scheduled

When you think of workation, you imagine going on a trip and completing your work more elegantly than usual

Rather than just completing the work I have on hand, workcation feels more like attending a luxurious seminar where you can learn and have fun all day long

Below is an example of a workcation schedule

---

9:00 Water sports experience

12:30 Enjoy a wild game burger for lunch and interact with local businesses

14:30 Visit the Iya Kazura Bridge and the Oboke Gorge sightseeing boat

19:00 Meet and mingle with locals while enjoying a course meal of Awaodori chicken

---

As mentioned above, most of your time will be spent sightseeing and interacting with locals

It was so much fun that it almost felt like a trip, but it wasn't just a trip; I was also inspired by the opportunity to speak with local business owners, who I would not have had the opportunity to interact with on my own

I'm quite introverted, so I was a little nervous about interacting with people, but the locals welcomed us very warmly, and on top of that, the local Tokushima sake was so delicious that I two or three times as much as usual, and before I knew it, I was having a great time talking to them.

[Photos] Discover the charm of Miyoshi City, Tokushima Prefecture through workcation

Now, let's take a look at some of the attractions of Tokushima Prefecture that we learned about during the itinerary above

Former Masaumi Ryokan (Beyond Shikoku Office)

(*The Shikoku office was visited on my own during my free time. It was not included in the workcation program.)

You might be thinking, "Why are we suddenly introducing an office?", but Beyond Shikoku has an office in Tokushima

This was my first time visiting the Shikoku office, and I was quite surprised to see that it was really an office! When I stepped inside the building, I was greeted by a very relaxing atmosphere where time seemed to flow quietly and slowly

That's no surprise. Apparently this place was originally a ryokan (Japanese inn) and is now a satellite office. I hope to introduce the Shikoku office in more detail in another blog post

 

Delicious Tokushima cuisine

Everything I ate in Tokushima was delicious

Here are some examples

At hesosalon

https://hesocamp.o-rai.co.jp/hesosalon.html

We enjoyed the game dishes as the main course

 

Cafe & Game (Yokai Yashiki)

https://www.instagram.com/cafe.and.jibie/

I had a wild game burger at the Cafe & Wild Game attached to the Yokai House at the roadside station "Oboke."

By the way, some of you may be wondering what gibier is

Gibier refers to the meat of hunting birds and animals such as deer and wild boar, and is said to be a luxury food ingredient that originated in France

Apparently, the reason they started serving this wild game burger here was to prevent damage caused by birds and animals

The SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) are being achieved.

It has been processed to reduce the distinctive flavor and smell of game meat, making it easy to eat even for game beginners and very delicious

(It seems that some people who become experts on gibier even start to enjoy the unique flavor and smell of the meat.)

 

Kazura Bridge

This is Kazurabashi Bridge, one of Tokushima's famous spots

When you look at the photo, you might wonder why everyone is clinging to the handrail

That's because the ground under this bridge is very loose

This is scary. It reminded me of the time when I used to work on site wearing a safety harness

It was a thrilling and fun experience

Pleasure boat experience

Unlike Kazurabashi Bridge, this is a tourist event where you can enjoy the scenery of the Yoshino River while riding on a pleasantly rocking boat

Inside the sightseeing boat

These are the participants of this workcation (3 people from the Development Department, 1 person from the Technical Sales Department, and 1 person from the Web Services Department)

I was able to learn about the good things about Tokushima from many other perspectives, but I'll leave it at that for now

Not just because it's local, but because it's local. Why do businesses do local business?

▲Mr. Yokokawa from Fobs Co., Ltd., who guided us through the workcation

Now let's talk about the serious side of workcations

In Miyoshi City, Tokushima Prefecture, there are people who work in Miyoshi for a variety of reasons, including people who have lived in the city for a long time, people who have returned to the city, and people who have moved to Miyoshi City from other areas

This is something I have also felt, but have you ever wondered why entrepreneurs choose to do local business?

However, through my workcation, I realized that I had no idea about the appeal of local businesses

In fact, many entrepreneurs have been developing their businesses by taking full advantage of local characteristics. The business tip I heard from them was to "start with a small investment."

For example, many people try to open a cafe after investing a huge amount of money in a stylish building, but if they are unable to attract customers and make any sales, they could suffer huge losses

Therefore, even if the exterior is not what you want, it is more likely to succeed if you first open a cafe in a vacant property, for example, and then think about what kind of investment you will make next

I have a habit of trying to do things too big from the beginning, so I reflected on the fact that this is why I don't do very well... At the same time as reflecting on my experiences, I also learned a great lesson

Benefits for local businesses

▲Mr. Ohno, who we had the opportunity to interact with as a local businessman (runs a bar, guesthouse, etc.)

It seems that Miyoshi City in Tokushima Prefecture has many of the conditions mentioned above for starting a business with minimal investment

Some of them were as follows:

There is less competition than in cities, making it easier to differentiate

As I mentioned at the beginning, the city has it all

However, this is precisely why competition in cities tends to be fierce, and it is often difficult to develop your business in such an environment

In this respect, local areas do not have as fierce competition as cities, so it is relatively easy to get results just by taking action

It's easy to make horizontal connections

In local areas where the population is not as large as in cities, it is easy to expand horizontal connections, to the point that you are sure to meet someone you know if you go to a nearby bar

As a result, they are able to receive advice from senior business owners, and in some cases, they may even be introduced to new business opportunities

Reduced living and operating costs

In Miyoshi City, Tokushima Prefecture, there are a certain number of landlords who have properties they want to sell, so there is apparently an opportunity to own a property at a low price

Prices are high in the city, so this is a big advantage of living in the countryside

I often feel that when the cost of living and operating costs are high, it is difficult to take on big challenges in order to maintain them

Is it really necessary? Why do so many young people want to move to the city?

As mentioned above, I realized that locals have many advantages that city people don't have

don't you think that in general, many young people from local areas that they should move to the city first,

I'm one of them. I moved from the countryside to the city and thought, "The city is the best." (Though I love my hometown just as much.)

In this way, many young people are often considering moving to the city for the time being

When considering moving to a city to achieve your goals, it might be a good idea to reconsider whether you really need to go to the city

I currently live in the city, but through this workcation, I felt that it might be a good idea to periodically ask myself if there really is any benefit to continuing to live in the city

I'm glad I went! A summary of the appeal of workcation

▲The view around the Beyond Shikoku office in Miyoshi City, Tokushima Prefecture

So far, we have introduced workcations and the attractions of Miyoshi City, Tokushima Prefecture. What do you think?

During this workcation, I really fell in love with Miyoshi City in Tokushima Prefecture

I was completely defeated in just three days

 

I felt that the appeal of workcation was as follows:

• Learn about local businesses
• Increased connections with people
• You can experience rural life

I found the above points to be appealing, but I think this is a program that can be enjoyed from different angles by different people

If you are interested, please check out the details of workcations on the website below!

Tokushima Prefecture Workcation Program

Making connections with people can be the purpose of your trip

I thought it was wonderful to be able to meet various people while traveling, like on an office trip

I wondered if it was possible to have this kind of experience outside of workcations, and it turned out that Ourai Co., Ltd., the company that runs Heso Camp, where we stayed, and Heso Salon, where we enjoyed wild game cuisine, runs a service that makes this possible

What is "So-Gu" - a platform that connects people through travel?

So-Gu is a platform where you can meet people doing interesting things while traveling

This is a perfect service for people who want to hear about local businesses or make connections with people in each area

Please check the official website for details!

Go to So-Gu's official website »

 

Thank you for watching until the end.