Firefly in Japan

The other day, I went to a Starbucks in Jiyugaoka (theres 2). I ordered my coffee, as I do almost every day, since I drink a lot of coffee. I've been a big-time Starbucks customer for several years now. My coffee is handed to me with a smile and a cheerful ありがとうございます！, and I head upstairs.

I'm planning to get through some work, since it's a quiet Saturday morning with no disruptions. By habit, I sit next to a powerpoint, in case I need some extra juice. I sip my coffee, turn my laptop on, and start working.

An hour later, my battery runs out. I fish around in my laptop bag, and retrieve my AC Adapter, and plug it into the wall. 10 minutes later, a Starbucks person comes upstairs, and sees me shamelessly stealing power from them. She walks over to me.

Starbucks Excuse me, you're going to need to unplug your laptop.
Me Pardon me?
Starbucks We have a policy of no power usage here.
Me Excuse me? Starbucks is the mobile office for thousands of executives.
Starbucks Maybe, but that's our policy.
Me Thats the first time I've heard of it - I've been a loyal Starbucks customer for many years.
Starbucks It's written right there, next to the door.

She pointed to a sign, written in Japanese pointing away from the door, which means it's impossible to notice unless you enter, and then turn, and read the sign (in Japanese).

Me I can't read that though, and it's facing the wrong way.
Starbucks Sorry, thats the way it is.
Me I'm in the middle of some important work, I only need another 20 minutes.
Starbucks I'm sorry, I can't allow that. It's our policy.

Frustrated and angry, I unplugged my laptop, which quickly ran out of power. I stood up, and left Starbucks. STARBUCKS. SHITTING ON THE CUSTOMER SINCE 1971. Now, I prefer Tullys.

However this is fascinating study of the battle in Japan between "Customer Service", and "following the rules". Customer service is a very, very big part of Japanese culture. Following the rules is also a very important idea in Japanese culture. When a foreigner walks into a Japanese shop, these two ideals can often collide. Here is an example that was published in the JapanZine last week.

Unsuspecting Foreigner Hello, I like this hat. I need to get some money, can you hold this for me for 5 minutes? I'll be right back.
Shop Attendant I'm sorry, thats impossible.
Unsuspecting Foreigner What?
Shop Attendant That's against our rules.
Unsuspecting Foreigner uh, what?
Shop Attendant Sorry !

Almost any shop in America, whether it's a local hat shop or a sprawling department store will happily keep your purchase secured for a few minutes while you wander off to find some money - whether it's against the 'rules' or not.

Everyone living in Japan will come across this fascinating paradox between making the customer happy, and following the rules. Unfortunately sometimes in Japan common sense isn't so common, so the customer is apologetically stepped on, while the shop staff maintains inflexible, pointless rules that only serve to irritate.