Making noodles with Yamato’s machine changed the feeling of ‘just ramen’ to that of ‘cooking’.
Originally, my husband, who runs a construction company, thought that with the population said to be decreasing in the future, the future of the construction industry might not be so bright.
I also thought that if we made it a bit more fashionable, women would be able to come in alone and enjoy the ramen without any resistance.
The other thing is, as President Fujii says, “Women are the target from now on!” This is the backbone of our business. For this reason, I wanted to make the shop gate beautiful so that women can come here with peace of mind, the shop is hygienic and the products are artistic and sensible when women look at them.
When customers are told what kind of shop Bari is, there is a figure they want to see.
It should be a beautiful and friendly shop that only a female owner can make. There are not many in the ramen industry. Men’s vigour and power are good, but I want to convey the sensitivity and delicacy of femininity to our customers. We also want our customers to feel the spirit of hospitality. I also think that customers are looking for the fact that we are a ramen shop. That’s why we are energetic, fast and tasty. We want to convey these five things to our customers.
Izakaya style revamped
Specialised in ramen and became a restaurant specialising in pork ramen
One year after opening, the manager of one of the four people initially hired had a misconduct incident and left the company, followed by the resignation of two others, so there were people problems. At the time, my husband, the president, was also managing the ramen shop, but he had to manage the construction business as well, and there was no one to supervise him, so the remaining employee made decisions on his own, and even decisions that did not fit with the direction of the company were made on his own. Problems broke out.
So, the owner found it difficult to combine the construction business and food and drink. He came to me for advice, saying that if things continued as they were, he might have to close the food and beverage side of the business. At the time, I was working as an office worker and my child was small, so I was also raising my child at the same time, but I felt that closing the restaurant suddenly for my own reasons would be disrespectful to the staff and customers, and I should not do it. I thought, ‘I’m going to go into the shop. I said, ‘I’m going to go into the restaurant.
I had no experience in the restaurant business before, but when I was working hard at the ramen shop, Togawa, the current site manager, joined the company. Together we started to rebuild the restaurant, making use of Togawa’s experience.
In fact, at first, the restaurant was called Hakata Ramen & Dining Bari, and during the evening hours it was styled as an izakaya (Japanese-style pub), but from the customers’ point of view, this was a location where people would come by car, and many customers would stay longer in the dining room, so it was difficult for customers who wanted to eat ramen to enter the restaurant.
So we decided to change the restaurant and rebrand it as Hakata Tonkotsu Bari, specialising in ramen and tonkotsu ramen.
Some customers who liked the izakaya style were angry, but we changed the restaurant’s mission to “provide good ramen” and decided to offer authentic, creative Hakata tonkotsu ramen, with tonkotsu soup as the main ingredient.
Commitment to ingredients, and a commitment to representing ‘Okayama’ and ‘Setouchi’ amongst them.
We are particular about using local products and other ingredients to make our products, and recently we have finally started to focus on making products using local Okayama ingredients. Sometimes, even things that are obvious to us when making products are not conveyed to our customers, and when we conveyed them, we were able to offer ‘extraordinary’ surprises. People say, ‘There are lots of other ramen shops that stick to handmade products. But I think we need to communicate to our customers exactly what kind of commitment we are making.
I think that the Yamato noodle-making machine was a turning point and a tremendous opportunity to get to this point. By installing the noodle-making machine and making noodles, what used to feel like ‘just ramen’ has changed to a sense of ‘cooking’ since we started making noodles by hand. This can be said for both staff and customers, but I think it changed the mindset of all the staff when they put in the machine and practised making the noodles themselves, and made it visible. We know what’s ‘behind’ the products we make ourselves, so it gave us confidence when offering them to our customers. I think that with Mr Yamato as a kick-start, the idea that there is everyone’s thoughts and feelings in a bowl of ramen took shape. I think this has taken shape. I am very grateful to Yamato-san. I am really grateful to Yamato-san.
The thing I am most proud of is my staff
I want to grow with them.
I am acutely aware that the shop cannot be done by me alone, it is only possible with everyone who works as a team. I am grateful for that, and the way each staff member treats customers determines the image of the restaurant, which I value and am proud of.
I am proud of the fact that we are able to satisfy all our customers. I am not yet able to satisfy all customers, but I want to pursue this goal little by little. I want to train as many staff members as possible whom I can be proud of, and I want to grow together with them.
I often hear people say, ‘I want to open a ramen shop but I don’t want to hire people. I hear from people who want to open a ramen shop but don’t want to hire people, but I think that there is no other place where relationships with people are as deep as in a restaurant. Of course, we have to say harsh things, and we have to tell people what they can’t and can’t do! But I think about the happiness of the people and I want them to understand that. I want them to know that I am thinking about their happiness.
I want my staff to be materially and spiritually
I want them to be happy.
I want to fulfil my duties so that they can be happy both materially and spiritually. So I want to learn and grow more myself to achieve this.
Also, when I think about what I am doing business for, I think of it as a ’cause’. What is a cause? At first, I want money. Or I want to live a wealthy life with my family. I think there were things like that.
But as I studied management at a private school, I started thinking about customers and wanting the staff who work hard to be the happiest. I started to think about people.
Many people want to work in various ramen shops, so I hope there will be friendly competition and the ramen industry will develop. I would like to see the ramen industry develop. I think this is not good for society, the workers or the customers, and in a sense, it is a hindrance to the ramen industry, and even if you start a business, it will soon cease, It’s a waste. I think it would be a waste if they just stop working.
Now that I have children of my own, when I think about what will happen to Japan in the future, I realise that it is not just the ramen industry, but everyone has to have their own ideas, and that companies can do well. Even if there are more rivals, I think it is important that the industry as a whole succeeds. I want everyone to succeed and I think it would be good for us to be able to compete on a deeper level through that.
