Ota Marketplace is a wholesale market where you can find fruits and vegetables, marine products and flowers. With its large-scale fruits, vegetables, and flowers merchandising, it stands for Japan’s No.1 marketplace in this field of business. Enter this early-rising, lively marketplace and you’ll discover a kingdom of fruits and vegetables brought in from all over Japan.

A Lifetime of a Muskmelon: Supporting the Purchasing Process Completely!

The very symbol of the “luxurious fruit”, the muskmelon, was born in what is today called the Imperial Garden in Shinjuku (Shinjuku Gyoen). For Shinjuku Takano, whose main store has always been right in that very Shinjuku, the muskmelon holds a very special meaning. This fruit oasis included the muskmelon in their collection ever since 1920 (the 2nd year of Taisho Period), and has come the long way with that fruit as one of their renowned trademarks. For that reason, they’ve established a very special, muskmelon-only shop, where they offer the greatest high-class muskmelon products in the country. While stationed at the Ota Marketplace, they constantly gather and exchange the information with the suppliers, and they have the chance to choose the most exquisite fruits Japan has to offer, with the eyes and the mind of a high-skilled professional.

Every morning there is a muskmelon auction at a special muskmelon-only part of the marketplace – the muskmelon is regarded as a special fruit compared to the other. After a thorough and extremely meticulous consideration, Shinjuku Takano’s chosen winner is from Shizuoka Prefecture, well-known for its production of a melon type called Earl’s Favorite.

“It is true that the growth and distribution system of the muskmelon has developed greatly, but honestly, the real challenge starts after deciding on the marketplace”, says Susumu Ogawa, the head of the fruit development sector for Shinjuku Takano with more than 40 years of experience related to managing the fruits market. “You cannot present the muskmelon in all of its greatness by just selling the product. You have to communicate with the customer, and inquire about their preference – do they like a softer, or a mushier melon, or one, that is not yet ripe, of a fairly solid texture? The seller has to think the whole selling process through and through, until the very moment the customer actually takes the first bite. We have to take care of the product, the muskmelon, until it is served on the customer’s plate – it is our responsibility to watch over it during the whole melon’s lifetime, so to speak. I think it is that very devotion what brings our customers back for more. You see, the fruit cannot speak for itself. That is why we have to make sure the customer tries it, even just once. Customers’ finding the taste to their liking could encourage their further interest in the fruit, as well. I think we could even say that trying that first bite, marks the start of a beautiful conversation between the fruit and the consumer.”

It is very difficult to harvest the same amount of fruits every year, especially because of the unstable weather conditions. For that reason it seems of utmost importance to have the latest, real-time information about the producing area. Manager Ogawa always places great value on the communication with the local producers, which is why he often travels across the whole country to personally gather information.