The number of I-PRIMO stores in operation outside of Japan has been increasing year on year, reaching a total of 21 stores as of May 2018. Since 2017, Primo Japan has held an inter-group “Japan Training Program” to support our new employees once they have completed their first year with the company. The idea behind the program is to help those early-career employees working in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and mainland China to understand the Japan-born I-PRIMO brand more deeply, so that they, in turn, can help their customers more effectively through their daily work. Now in its second year, the program welcomed a total of 35 employees from each of the Taiwan, Hong Kong, and mainland China areas, who gathered together for a four-day training schedule in Tokyo starting Tuesday, May 15, 2018.
We were proud to offer participants an engaging and enriching training program, conducted under the careful supervision and guidance of our Japan-based employees and covering a range of topics. The main activities included a tour of the I-PRIMO flagship store in Ginza along with a talk from the store manager there; a training session on the processes involved in creating our products at our manufacturing workshop; group work aimed at further developing excellent customer service skills, and much more.
Day 1. Arriving at the I-PRIMO Ginza flagship store, located on Ginza’s Chuo-dori in Tokyo, many participants were heard to exclaim, “Qì pài!” as they stepped inside the store. “Qì pài!” is a Chinese phrase indicating that something has a magnificently grand and impressive (yet tasteful) style—just the kind of response we were hoping for in deciding to begin the training at the Ginza flagship store. Participants came full of questions for the store manager and could be seen diligently taking notes during the manager’s talk. In our product manufacturing workshop, participants had the rare opportunity to see for themselves the level of quality and skill required to create bridal jewelry that will become “the purchase of a lifetime” for our customers, including making size adjustments, learning about the technology and tools used to engrave and set small “Promise Diamonds”, the special processing of the ring’s surface, etc.
The ultimate goal of our “Japan Training Program” is, of course, “to develop firsthand knowledge and mindfulness in participants’ day-to-day work”. But another key mission is also to give participants a more direct connection with and sense of fondness for Japan and Japanese culture, along with an awareness of being a part of the more than 1,000-strong “ALL-PRIMO” team. On the evening of the second day, a large social event, which our Japan-based employees also joined, was held at a hotel near Tokyo Tower. Participants also had free time to explore, and, based on feedback such as “I ate so much delicious food!”, “I had so much fun hitting all the amazing shops here!”, “I really felt a sense of Japanese hospitality through the customer service I received,” and so on, it seems as though they each had a truly wonderful time.
Even though we live and work in different areas, a desire to cheer each other on and encourage one another to make our best efforts was a natural outcome of this program. For all who participated, the experience was a wonderful exchange across the borders that normally separate us.