Ramen shops running out of steam

TOKYO, Sep 15 (News On Japan) - Amid rising steam from the soup, noodles, chashu pork, and seasoned eggs, Japan's highly popular national dish, ramen, is experiencing an unprecedented surge in bankruptcies in 2023.

According to data from Tokyo Shoko Research, there were 28 bankruptcies of ramen shops from January to August 2023.

This already surpasses the 21 bankruptcies for the entire year of 2022 and is on par with the annual number of bankruptcies in 2021.

If this trend continues, there is a possibility that 2023 will exceed the 41 cases in 2019.

Food business expert Hiroaki Watanabe remarked, "Even before the pandemic, ramen shops were a tough industry, with more than 80% of new ones closing within three years of opening. During the pandemic there were subsidies ... which helped some businesses survive. It seems that many decided to close after the subsidies ended."

by Brian Dentry

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