At your convenience

From the top of Mount Fuji to the gates of the holiest shrines, it isn’t much of an exaggeration to say that vending machines are everywhere in Japan: at the last count, there were 2.64 million of them. They light up every street corner and station platform; there’s hardly an office or a public building without one standing sentry. Most service the country’s voracious thirst for beverages, particularly ready-to-drink coffee and tea. A vast industry has been built around the idea of developing hot and cold drinks that can be housed in a can or plastic bottle, dispensed from a machine and still satisfy the precise palate of the Japanese consumer. Creating drinkable tea in a plastic bottle took years of research and development (Kirin won that race in 1986 with its Gogo no Kocha, or “Afternoon Tea”). When Suntory bought French drinks brand Orangina, its bulbous glass bottle was redesigned in plastic for its new life in a vending machine.

Seemingly unloved in other countries, these machines are as seasonal as traditional food menus in Japan and often switch from dispensing cold drinks to hot in the cooler months. There are regional variations too. A vending machine in Okinawa will offer chilled bottles of shikuwasa citrus squash and pineapple-flavoured Bireley’s that you won’t find in Tokyo. Japanese consumers crave novelty – a quick glance at one of these machines will reveal what is popular, whether that’s fat-busting health drinks or cold green teas that almost rival a fresh brew. Unsurprisingly, vending machines have also moved far beyond just drinks: ice cream (Seventeen Ice is the classic in that genre), frozen food, bags of rice, hangover cures and clean underwear are just some of the array of products on offer. Of course, it helps that the machines aren’t troubled by vandals in low-crime Japan.

Innovation in the technology has been slow but steady. The energy-saving period (setsuden) that followed the tsunami and nuclear meltdown in Fukushima in 2011 pushed developers to create more sustainable versions. Asahi Beverages recently developed a machine that absorbs carbon dioxide and artificial intelligence is having its own impact – one coffee machine now determines which beans to use based, apparently, on the customer’s preferences.

Crucially, vending machines also double as mini-billboards for brands and are likely to be festooned with the latest campaigns. Tea company Ito En has hired the services of baseball player Shohei Ohtani, Japan’s biggest sports star, to bolster its market-leading bottled green tea, Oi Ocha. Perhaps peak vending machine has been reached in Akihabara, Tokyo’s electronics and anime district, where you will find a machine that sells cans of air for ¥500 (€3). Rarefied air, indeed. — L