A circle of friends connected by a goofy touch! On April 4, Kazuhiro Kakida, the owner of the sushi restaurant “Yurakucho Kakida,” appeared on the radio program “GRAND MARQUEE” in the “FIST BUMP” corner. We asked him about the secret of his “strength” in opening one popular restaurant after another that cannot take reservations, despite the fact that he is the president of a human resource-related company.
INDEX
The “Strength” of Opening a Sushi Restaurant and a Yakiniku Restaurant While Being the President of a Human Resources Company
Takano (MC): Today, the program is celebrating its 100th anniversary.
Kakida: Yes. Strong (haha).
Takano: I received a “strong” from Mr. Kakita right away. That’s good (haha).
Celeina (MC): Thank you very much (haha).
Takano: I received the comment “strong,” but (our previous guest) 5sai said. He is a really strong guy.
Celeina: I would like to hold on to that strength.
Takano: First of all, I heard that you are the owner of Yurakucho Kakida, and that you also run several companies that are not related to the restaurant business.
Kakida: I used to like fishing and would serve the fish I caught to my employees. The employees were happy with that, so I started thinking that I wanted to be a sushi bar owner, leaving the work to the employees, and I did it.
Celeina: Wow, it’s a hobby that has already evolved into a career.
Takano: You say it is easy (haha), but if it were normal, it would be very difficult.
Celeina: A sushi restaurant can’t just make do with what you make yourself, can it? I think it is important to purchase fresh seafood. Did you have connections with markets?
Kakida: I didn’t have any connections to begin with. But I have been running my company for 8 years and have many friends who are CEOs, and one of them happened to be a friend of mine who goes to the market and he took me there. Once I got through the entrance, I was good at expanding from there (haha).
Takano: Strong (haha).
Celeina: Really strong (haha).
Takano: All the comments are strong (haha).
Celeina: I heard that you also opened “Yakiniku Kakida” this year. How did you open this one?
Kakida: I originally liked sushi, but I prefer yakiniku. The sushi restaurant is doing very well now, so I wanted to start something I like more, so I opened a yakiniku restaurant in January.
Celeina: I heared that it is difficult to make reservations at both of these restaurants.
Kakida: That’s right. I don’t know what that means (haha).
Celeina: That’s why they are so delicious (haha).
Takano: The yakiniku seems to be strong, too.
Kakida: That’s right. I am particular about “strongs”.
Takano: What is the reason why you are so particular about “strong”?
Kakida: The word “strong” probably doesn’t hurt anyone, and it’s funny and positive. You can say it about anything.
Celeina: Not only physical strength, but also mindset can be appealing.
Kakida: That’s right. “Cool” is also strong. “Cute” is also strong. “Funny” is also strong (hahaZ).
Takano: That’s wonderful. What motivates you to do business as a strong man?
Kakida: I have a lot of free time, so my first motivation is to entertain people.
Celeina: You want to make someone happy?
Kakida: Yes, that’s right. If you stay at home and sleep, nothing will happen. I would be happy if I could make people happy by opening a sushi restaurant. The yakiniku restaurant is like that, too. That’s how it started.
Takano:I have found out that strength is kindness. I had heard that Mr. Kakida was a “strong man,” so I wondered what kind of person he would be, and I was a bit nervous, too, wearing a tiger T-shirt or something, but he came with a very soft atmosphere. I thought he was strong and kind. I guess strength is kindness. Kindness is strength.
Now, I asked Mr. Kakida, such a strong man, to choose a song he would like everyone to listen to together on the radio at this time.
Kakida: Taro Hakase’s “Jounetsu Tairiku” (Continent of Passion).
Takano: That’s a strong choice (haha). May I ask why you chose the song?
Kakida: I wanted to express my strong desire to appear on the TV program “Jounetsu Tairiku” as both a business owner and a sushi restaurant owner.
Sushi to LA as a foothold for global expansion
Celeina: You opened a new restaurant this year. What are your future plans?
Kakida: Our future plan is to expand our business to the world. I’m thinking of starting with LA next year, and from there it’s all over the world.
Takano: All over the world. That sounds great. Are you going to go with sushi? Yakiniku?
Kakida: We will go with sushi.
Celeina: If it were the world, it would certainly be sushi ……. Oh, but yakiniku would sting too!
Kakida: Yakiniku is also strong, but I want to go for sushi. I am now aiming for the world with sushi.
Takano: Are you actually going to visit L.A.?
Kakida: I will start next year, so I am thinking of doing everything from the inspection to the opening next year. We are busy in Japan right now, so we are going to establish a firm foothold there, and next year we will start our global expansion. The first step is L.A.
Takano: The word “L.A.” is already very strong (haha).
Kakida: That is one of the reasons why I chose L.A. I have never been there before.
Celeina: Now, “FIST BUMP” is a circle of friends connected by “GUTATCH”, and we are asking you to introduce your friends to us.
Kakida: This is Haruhisa Okamura, the owner of Old Rookie Sauna. We have been good friends for a long time, and we are fishing friends.
Celeina: I see, so you are connected through your hobbies.
Takano: If you were to describe Mr. Okamura in one word, what kind of person would he be?
Kakida: A man who is even stronger. Mr. Okamura is the founding president and chairman of a listed company, and now he is the owner of Old Rookie Sauna.
Takano: Strong is also a key word for sauna, isn’t it? Thank you very much. Tomorrow, I’ll be talking to Haruhisa Okamura of Old Rookie Sauna.
Celeina: Today’s guest on “FIST BUMP” is Kazuhiro Kakida, the owner of Kakida in Yurakucho. Thank you very much!
GRAND MARQUEE
J-WAVE (81.3FM) Mon-Thu 16:00 – 18:50
Navigator: Shinya Takano, Celeina Ann
