Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
Yamaguchi is a general store that practically made Sawtelle Blvd. Growing up in the area, I have distinct memories of being in the store and strolling through the aisles. My mom would buy me fragrant erasers which I’d take to school to amaze the non-Japanese American kids. On top of that, I’d get cool Japanese pencils, Japanese super hero pencil cases which even had pencil sharpeners and secret compartments built in, Japanese ruled notebooks for hiragana, katakana, and kanji practice, my “Year of the Cock” t-shirt, and Mazinga and Raideen robot toys. This is Deluxe Raideen purchased from Yamaguchi. If it were in mint condition in the original box, it’d be worth over $500. But know this: “There are many like it, but this one is mine.” As I got “older,” in later elementary school, Yamaguchi was the destination to buy candy and a soda either before or after Japanese school which was conveniently around the corner. The shortened name was “Yama’s” as in, “Do you want to go to Yama’s?” It was almost a writ of passage to leave the campus which is really just a small lot with a few classrooms. We’d walk either before or after class that one block to make a purchase without ours parents scrutiny. Picking out candies or erasers, we’d then get a handful of change, which at least for me, would make me feel good about buying something. It became almost a daily trip, and was an important part of the day. A lot of us might say that going to Japanese school was a waste, “I wish we studied more” in retrospect, but part of my memory of the school, is it’s indelible and unbreakable link it had with Yamaguchi’s. Going to school wasn’t a waste of time, as long as I got to visit my favorite shop. It was definitely part of “growing up” which to me meant joining the economic force of the real world and perhaps spending my first bits of saved money. In the middle years, my 20′s. I’ll admit, I visited very little. I thought I outgrew the shop. My memories of the store still remained from my juvenile days. Erasers, toys, construction paper, candy, ice-cream, and soda. But maybe five years ago, I discovered Yamaguchi’s carried Dickies pants for the gardners! I went in maybe twice and bought years worth of unpleated and denim Dickies. If I bought 8 pairs, I got the 9th free, which explains why a lot of you might think I’m wearing the same pants over and over. Before I was born, I’m sure this shop was already a community fixture. Yet today the sign reads, “After over 60 years in business, we’ll be soon closing our doors. It has been our pleasure to serve 4 generations of loyal customers and friends. We thank you for your loyalty and patronage these many years. Henry and Jack Yamaguchi.” I can only guess that in later 40s and 50s, this was the place...
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Yamaguchi is a general store that practically made Sawtelle Blvd. Growing up in the area, I have distinct memories of being in the store and strolling through the aisles. My mom would buy me fragrant erasers which I'd take to school to amaze the non-Japanese American kids. On top of that, I'd get cool Japanese pencils, Japanese super hero pencil cases which even had pencil sharpeners and secret...
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A good point was brought up. Is the mobile video store cool for the actual neighbors? The mobile video store does park outside of an office building’s parking lot, but I did see it outside of someone’s house earlier. The area is fairly dense, and I guess the area is used to foot traffic as it is, since people come and go from parking spots to Sawtelle. I find this guy wanting to stay low key, so I think he’s cool. But like everything else, it’s ok somewhere else, just not at, or, or near your house. Here’s some examples of shit you don’t mind far away, graffiti, dude selling fruit on the street, homeless dude taking shits, name it, almost everything fits. Doesn’t it? The new issue is out, GR43. Hope you like it.
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A good point was brought up. Is the mobile video store cool for the actual neighbors?
The mobile video store does park outside of an office building's parking lot, but I did see it outside of someone's house earlier. The area is fairly dense, and I guess the area is used to foot traffic as it is, since people come and go from parking spots to Sawtelle. I find this guy wanting to stay low key, so I...
Continue reading
The mobile video store does park outside of an office building's parking lot, but I did see it outside of someone's house earlier. The area is fairly dense, and I guess the area is used to foot traffic as it is, since people come and go from parking spots to Sawtelle. I find this guy wanting to stay low key, so I...
Part 18 – Guerilla business person case study. On Sawtelle, there was this video store. It had a crappy sign, looked messy, but was packed with tapes. His clients didn’t give a shit how or where they parked, as long as they could get in and out with returns and new flicks. He must have had the hard to find Japanese shows. Black Market store who’s next door (loves to talk shit about GR we always hear) took over his spot and opened a sneaker store. With his spot gone, I figured he was over. I was wrong. Instead of hunting around for an overpriced shop, the owner went guerilla and opened on the streets. See the camper in the photo? From a lot of angles, it looks like someone’s in there chillin, but actually, it’s the video store! Walking by, I saw some tapes from the front window. I was wondering who the heck was living among tapes, but the backdoor was open, and I saw dvd’s hanging on the walls and a person inside shuffling through titles. The dvd shop owner was standing in the doorway of his ride. Keeping his clientele, moving just a block or two down, keeping on the d.l., and paying no rent (he had this camper already), I’m impressed by this dude. He’s using the basic money making pricinples of making people happy by providing a service, making a buck, and doing it DIY. Too Short supposedly got his start by selling his tapes and singles from his car trunk, tons of people make cash from recycling people’s junk, and this dude, we’ll see where he goes and how long he lasts. It’s obvious to me, that he’s got his game down. I saw people driving up, parking, renting, and taking off while I sat and took the photo. My questions are: How did he spread the word that he’d be parked in a certain area? Did he call his client list and tell them? Is there an email network going on? When did he start this neighborhood thing? (My guess is right away). Is it working for him? (Obviously does). Trouble? (He’s renting tapes from his car. I’m sure it’s not legal, but in the end, this is totally cool and innocuous). It’s not much different than “those” people who do weekly garage sale, right? I wish there was more of this guerilla stuff going on in our area. I remember this shop when it was on Sawtelle, and thinking it was old school, a great service, but maybe not fitting in the area as a store front. Now, he’s my hero for the minute. File this guy under punk rock.
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