Convenient City
July 15th, 2007
One thing that struck me when I moved to Ikebukuro was the sheer number of convenience stores, or conbini. In the 500-meter-square area shown, there are no fewer than 18 such shops–and I’m not sure that the map shows them all.
Even more surprising was the concentration of one brand of store. In this area, Family Mart is king. 10 of the 18 stores here are FM, with am-pm coming in second with 5. You’ll note that in one area, there are three Family Marts within just a block or so of each other.
Hello, I’ve really enjoyed your blog about the move to Ikebukuro. I’ve been trying to find your building on Google Earth but I don’t think it’s there. Is the building just constructed? Maybe not yet updated in their picture files. Well, looking forward to more adventures in the new place.
Yep, Google Earth uses photos a few years out of date. The building was just a hole in the ground then–had three different-colored construction vehicles in the lot, in the GE photo.