Located in a prime location in Ikebukuro, Tokyo"Kendo Izakaya Zanshin"I'm sure there are many people who have been helped by him after practice or a match. This time, we spoke with Mr. Miyahara of RF Technica Co., Ltd., who was involved in the conception, establishment, and operation of Izakaya Zanshin. His idea of ​​"creating a community of kendo practitioners" was also something BUSHIZO had envisioned, so I've become an even bigger fan of Zanshin!

Profile

Tadashi Miyahara Born in Tokyo in 1974. Graduated from Seisoku High School and went on to Nippon Sport Science University. After graduating, he joined USEN. After working for a construction-related staffing agency, he founded RF Technica in 2004. He was involved in the conception and establishment of Izakaya Zanshin. He is currently one of the management team. He is a 6th dan kendo trainee.

Miyahara's career history

—Could you tell us about your career? Miyahara"My father founded the Japanese National Railways Kendo ClubInfluenced by this, I also started kendo in the first grade of elementary school." Your father was an amazing person too! What made you start kendo? Miyahara"At first, I was kind of tricked into starting kendo. They took me to the dojo, but they said, 'If you don't do kendo, you can't join.' I was bored outside, so I had no choice but to say, 'I want to do kendo.'" —That's a clever trick lol Miyahara"My father told me, 'I told you not to quit, so don't ever quit!' That's why I started kendo. I really wanted to quit until I was in the lower grades of elementary school. But as I got older, I started winning matches and I started to enjoy kendo." —I have the impression that you like kendo, so this is surprising. Miyahara"I entered junior high school, but there were so few members that the club was disbanded when I was in my second year. After that, I practiced at a local dojo." —That was unfortunate. Which high school did you go to? Miyahara"I went on to Seisoku High School in Tokyo. It had a liberal school culture, but it also put a lot of emphasis on kendo. I started to take kendo seriously in my first year of high school. At the time, Kokushikan High School won the Tokyo Inter-High School Championships qualifying tournament, and all the members who won were in tears."I wonder if I could devote myself to kendo to this extent?"I asked myself this question. From then on, I started to become interested in kendo." -So you were inspired by the attitude towards kendo at other schools. You went on to study at Nippon Sport Science University. Miyahara"In high school, I made it to the top 16 in Tokyo in both team and individual competitions. I wanted to pursue kendo seriously in college, so I went on to the strong Nippon Sport Science University. As soon as I enrolled, I gave up easily, thinking, 'There's no way I'll become a regular,' because the other members around me were so good at kendo." -I guess that can't be helped, haha. Did you work for an architecture-related company right from the time you graduated? Miyahara"I joined my current company, USEN, as a new graduate. I was assigned to a department that was like an independent guerrilla force because I was a graduate of Nippon Sport Science University and seemed to have a strong mentality. The department required monthly business trips to areas where sales were poor, so during that time I was only able to practice kendo about three times a year. After that, I worked for a construction-related staffing agency before starting my own business. I didn't have time to devote to kendo in my 20s."

Reason for starting the business

Image source: RF Technica HP (http://rftecnica.com/） Miyahara"After working for a cable broadcasting company, I became a salesperson for a construction-related staffing agency. At the time, I knew nothing about construction, but I received kind guidance from a senior site supervisor." —Can you tell us why you started your own business? Miyahara"The reason I started my business wasWe want to protect the jobs of our site supervisors.That was my only thought. In those days, many site supervisors were laid off. I even advised my senior colleagues who had taught me the job to resign. It was very painful."I'll get the job and protect the jobs of the site supervisors."I decided to do so.” —I can feel Miyahara's manliness. Miyahara"The reason I'm a manager is"We want to provide a place for employees to work until they are able to work again."That's all. They're all in good health even though they're reaching retirement age. They could do jobs other than architecture. That's one of the reasons why I opened Izakaya Zanshin."

Resuming Kendo as "Ribaken"

*At the Zanshin Cup hosted by Zanshin Co., Ltd. Miyahara"When my son started kendo, I also started practicing kendo again.I tried it for the first time in a while and got hooked.I think I was around 34 years old at the time. As an adult, you can practice kendo at your own pace and there are no strict hierarchical relationships. Some employees had experience in kendo, so we decided to start a kendo club at the company." —It's what's known as "Revival Kendo," or "Ribaken" for short. Please tell us the purpose of the RF Technica Kendo Club's activities. Miyahara"It was definitely company PR. First of all, we wanted to make our company's name known to people involved in kendo. We thought that if we started to do well in tournaments, there would be more opportunities for people to notice our company. From that time on, our goal was to"To be active in the construction industry conference"It's better if it leads to work." -The other day, you won the construction industry competition. Miyahara"Thankfully, we were able to win for the first time. Our company was discovered at the construction industry tournament, which led to a job offer. It's a case of cross-sword, cross-knowledge, and cross-love." —So it actually leads to work. Is it effective in recruiting? Miyahara"It also contributes greatly to recruitment. Through the activities of the Kendo Club,I'm really happy to be able to connect with my coworkers outside of work.That's what I mean. The bond between us deepens. However, we don't evaluate the Kendo Club members with favoritism. In fact, we try to evaluate them more strictly." -Have you ever felt that your performance evaluations were biased? Miyahara"Some people have a cynical view that only members of the kendo club are getting promoted. However, perhaps because of the mental strength they have developed through kendo, members of the kendo club are doing well in the company. It's very encouraging. It's only natural that people should be evaluated based on the quality of their work."

Reasons for starting Izakaya Zanshin

Miyahara"There are two purposes. The first purpose is,I want to create an izakaya that welcomes kendo practitionersThat's what I mean. If you bring protective gear to an izakaya, people won't like it. I thought that was really restrictive." - I understand that very well haha Miyahara"The second one is"I want to create a community of kendo practitioners"I thought, "For example, if you want to buy a car, you want to be connected to a kendo practitioner who sells cars. If you want to buy insurance, you want to be connected to a kendo practitioner who works at an insurance company. That's the kind of world I wanted to create. After all, it's reassuring to know that both parties practice kendo. I think it's more efficient to have work run within a community, because it starts from a relationship of trust." —I really sympathize with that. *The Zanshin Cup is sponsored by Zanshin Co., Ltd. The management team is in charge of running the tournament. The management philosophy is "exchanging swords, knowing love."

I want to make Zanshin a platform for spreading Japanese culture.

*The newly renovated Izakaya Zanshin. A stage has also been installed. —Congratulations on the renovation of Izakaya Zanshin! Miyahara"Thank you very much. Finally, what I want to do has become a reality.Becoming a platform for disseminating Japanese cultureI would be happy if those involved in kendo could make use of this. For example, I would like to hold a "Kendo Club Job Hunting Fair" for new graduates in Zanshin, and we are already in the preparation stage. Those with kendo experience can learn basic etiquette and manners.Kendo practitioners are also attractive human resources.I think other companies have the same impression." —If I were a student, I would have participated in the Kendo job hunt. Miyahara"We want to promote Japanese culture, including kendo, to foreign tourists. That's another role we want Zanshin to play." —Zanshin Co., Ltd. is a valuable entity that promotes not only kendo but also Japanese culture. I hope that you will become a standard-bearer for the spread and development of Japanese culture while cherishing "zanshin," the foundation of martial arts. BUSHIZO will continue to support Zanshin Co., Ltd. Thank you for today. Japanese-style sports bar Zanshin http://www.zanshin.tokyo/