Normally, bento boxes are offered in a few variations. Making each bento box differently would be too costly and unprofitable. However, someone overcame this obstacle. He started a lunchbox delivery service in San Francisco. Each lunchbox contained different ingredients. Computers and crowdsourcing made it possible to create unique bento boxes. Eating habits and shopping behavior change with the times. Every company needs to understand and grasp these evolving consumer shopping behaviors. Creating retail and services that customers choose is key to surviving in this turbulent era.
The healing effect of pets is now understood through the secretion of oxytocin, also known as the happiness hormone. Perhaps stuffed animals, which we interact with regularly, provide a similar healing effect. Some people use these stuffed animals not only for comfort but also as a tool to satisfy their need for communication. There is a travel company called “Unagi Travel.” This travel agency takes “stuffed animals” on trips. They take numerous commemorative photos of the stuffed animals at tourist destinations. Customers pay money for these commemorative photos of their stuffed animals at these locations. They have photos taken of their stuffed animals traveling abroad and post them on Facebook. The idea is that posting them on Facebook will result in many “likes” due to their cuteness, making them feel happy. This service helps users to satisfy their need for communication. Customers may be simultaneously consuming communication and consuming comfort, thus obtaining two kinds of satisfaction.
As environments with AI and the internet become “natural” for humans, objectively observing this “natural environment” and considering the optimization of humanity as a whole and AI will be crucial for businesses and consumers going forward. While searching on Google may not yield the answers you seek, there is an infinite amount of information that can provide hints. It is possible to synthesize your own thoughts from this information and create business ideas. People who travel with stuffed animals abroad are an overwhelming minority. When targeting such a small minority, a business cannot succeed by only targeting Japanese people. When you go beyond Japan and target the 7 billion people of the world, even a minority can have business opportunities. For example, Unagi Travel is an overwhelmingly minority. This startup has the potential to become a valuable “one-of-a-kind” business and even “number one.”
