You might think that the topic of convenience stores in Japan (konbini, コンビニ) would not be that interesting to foreigners with some association with the country or its culture. After all, there are convenience stores all over the world, and some of the largest Japanese chains, such Seven-Eleven and Lawson, have their origins in America (albeit now Japanese-owned), although there are wholly Japanese alternatives such as Family Mart, Sunkus, and Ministop. However, after spending any length of time in the country, you may find yourself developing a growing dependence on their services and products, and these convenience stores have a number of differences from those you might be used to back home and offer a uniquely Japanese experience.
Service-oriented
It seems that you cannot walk more than 100 meters in any direction in a Japanese city without coming across a convenience store (although they strangely seem to disappear when you really need one). Statistics show that there is approximately one for every 3,000 people in the country, and given the population density of the larger Japanese cities, the 100-meter figure above may not be far from the truth. They are almost all open 24 hours a day and you can be guaranteed of good service upon a visit.
Besides the typical range of products of drinks, alcohol (no limits in terms of purchase times), and snacks, there are a wide range of Japanese-language publications including manga (まんが, 漫画) comics, which you can stand and read all day without a complaint from a shop assistant (tenin, てにん, 店員). There are also various meals that you can have heated in a microwave, and even items such as socks, shirts, or ties, just in case you do not have time to return home before starting work after an extended nomikai (drinking party; のみかい, 飲み会) or after working overtime (zangyou, ざんぎょう, 残業). There is also often an ATM machine, which is very useful given that those at banks (ginkou, ぎんこう, 銀行) and post offices (yuubinkyoku, ゆうびんきょく, 郵便局) generally close early in the evening. Other useful services include being able to pay your utility bills, being able to order concert tickets or pay for books that you previously ordered on Amazon.co.jp, and being able to send and receive parcels.
Useful phrases
You will be greeted with irrashaimase (welcome; いっらしゃいませ) upon entering a konbini, in the same way as in a bar, but will not be expected to respond to this. Upon buying a boxed meal, a staff member will ask you whether you want it to be heated in a microwave in order to eat it immediately: お弁当を温めますか (obentou wo atatamemasu ka), to which you can reply はい。お願いします (hai, onegai shimasu) or いいえ。結構です (iie, kekkou desu). Other possibilities include ２番目でお待ちのお客様、こちらのレジでお伺い致します (nibanme de omachi no okyakusama, kochira no reji o ukagai itashimasu; will the next customer come to this counter). Finally, in order to facilitate your consumption of whatever products you have purchased, you will be asked if you wish for chopsticks, a straw, or a spoon: おはし/ストロー/スプーンをご利用ですか (ohashi/sutoro/supoon o goryou desu ka).
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