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Gunma / Maebashi
ART & PHILANTHROPY
3
days
Maebashi located 100km from Tokyo flourished as the most important base for the silk industry and related financial business during Japan’s modernization period. However, there have been signs of decline in recent years.
Maebashi-born entrepreneur Hitoshi Tanaka took the lead in revitalizing the town, investing his private money and time generously and involving local young people and entrepreneurs who cherish Maebashi. Today, Maebashi is featured as a hot place to visit in major media to appreciate art, design, and cuisine.
Tanaka will host the guests in Maebashi at the Shiroiya Hotel he has revived and give a tour of the neighborhood, showing various sprouting projects.
The journey will then be followed by the Nagai Family of the Nagai Sake Brewery, which is actively committed to revitalizing the Kawaba Village. It will be an opportunity to learn the history of the internationally acclaimed sake brewery and its involvement with the development of the local community.
The tour also includes a special open-view storage of the Hara Museum ARC, a pioneer dedicated to contemporary art designed by Arata Isozaki, a Pritzker Architecture Prize recipient.
The Japanese dinner will take place at nearly 100 years of historic Ryotei, supported by the business community, including the Tanaka family.
Agenda as of SEP 30, 2024
| Sunday 27 October | Monday 28 October | Tuesday 29 October |
|---|---|---|---|
Morning | <Group 1> 07:30-09:45 Breakfast(the LOUNGE)<Group 2>08:00-09:45 Breakfast (the LOUNGE) 09:45 Leave Shiroiya Hotel 10:40 Visit Nagai Sake Brewery by the Nagai Family Enjoy sparkling sake in the forest of the water source of Nagai Sake Brewery 11:20 Visit Ricefield of ‘Yukihotaka Rice’ 11:40 Visit ‘SHINKA’(Tasting bar&Sake laboratory) | <Group 2> 07:30-09:30 Breakfast (the LOUNGE) <Group 1> 08:00-09:30 Breakfast (the LOUNGE) Check out by 9:30 10:00 Departure for Hara Museum ARC 11:00-12:30 Visit Hara Museum ARC & private open-view storage tour by a curator | |
Lunch | 12:30 Lunch at ‘Kura Cafe’ (Brewery cafe) | 13:00-14:00 Lunch (Mizuho Sushi) | |
Afternoon | Check-in at the SHIROIYA HOTEL by 15:00 (Adress: 2-2-15 Honmachi, Maebashi, Gunma 371-0023 Japan) 15:15-16:00 Shiroiya Hotel tour by Hitoshi Tanaka 16:00-17:00 Neighborhood tour by Hitoshi Tanaka | 14:30 Shopping at Koshinkan(Brewery store) 15:00 Departure from Brewery 15:05 Visit Kawaba Village office 15:25 Visit ‘Kawaba Denen Plaza’(Road side station) 16:10 Departure from ‘Kawaba Denen Plaza’ | 14:00 Departure for Tokyo by bus 16:30 Arrival at the summit venue (Hilton Daiba) |
Evening | <Group 1> 17:00-19:30 Welcome dinner (the RESTAURANT） 19:30- After-dinner drinks (the LOUNGE) 19:45- Light show (the LOUNGE) <Group 2> 17:00-19:30 Free hour or aperitif (the LOUNGE） 19:30- Before-dinner drinks （the LOUNGE） 19:45- Light show (the LOUNGE) 20-00-22:30 Welcome dinner (the RESTAURANT) *Cafe lounge ‘the LOUNGE’ is available from 17:00 to 23:00 for complimentary drinks and snacks. | 18:30 Dinner at a 96-year-old Japanese restaurant “Matsushima" 20:00 Return to Shiroiya Hotel *Cafe lounge ‘the LOUNGE’ is available from 17:00 to 23:00 for complimentary drinks and snacks. |
Host Family : Tanaka Family
Hitoshi Tanaka, a renowned entrepreneur, started his business at the age of 25 in 1988 and later founded an eyewear brand JINS in 2001. Today, there are over 700 JINS stores around the world with the vision of ‘Magnify Life (enriching people’s lives).’ Today, Hitoshi Tanaka is the CEO of JINS Holdings and he has entrusted his son Ryo Tanaka the eyewear business as the president and representative director of JINS Inc. Ryo Tanaka is determined to expand the succeeded business more globally with digital technology.
Hitoshi Tanaka will welcome the guests to his hometown, Maebashi. He is committed to rejuvenating its downtown by developing a variety of commercial buildings designed by acclaimed architects and encouraging young entrepreneurs to start their businesses.
Hitoshi Tanaka & Ryo Tanaka
Family Visit 1 : Tanaka Family
Tanaka will host the guests at his hotel ‘Shiroiya Hotel,’ the landmark of the revitalization project of Maebashi, and tour the neighborhood to introduce the fusion of historical commercial areas and newly developed projects focusing on art, design and culinary themes.
You will enjoy the museum class artworks, architectural projects, and exquisite food with local ingredients while immersing yourself in the local community of Maebashi.
Family visit 2: Kawaba Village, Nagai Family
The Nagai family is the descendants of the samurai of Suzaka in Nagano Prefecture and become Sake Brewers nearly 140 years ago. Shoji, the founder, fell in love with Kawaba Village water and started sake brewing. The 3rd generation became the mayor of Kawaba Village and established the concept of “agriculture plus tourism” contributing to the development of the region. The 5th generation became president of the Japanese famous roadside station at the request of Kawaba Village in 2007 and successfully rebuilt it attracting over 2 million annual tourists.
Noriyoshi, the 6th generation is a pioneer of awa sake(Sparkling sake), having developed the world‘s first sparkling sake with secondary fermentation in the bottle at over 5 atmospheres. Together with his wife Matsumi, he is also working to solve social issues such as environmental conservation and support for women's empowerment. In August 2023, Nagai Sake opened “SHINKA”, a tasting room and brewing laboratory, for the sake of challenge to create value of sake culture under the theme of "Tradition and Innovation”.
