The Future Envisioned for “Onagawa, Town of Music” - Children Hold Key to Local Development

Sound House’s “Onagawa, Town of Music” project has now begun. To be honest, there are lots of obstacles lying ahead, and I see no more than a 20% chance of success. You might say that it’s too pessimistic because Sound House is one of the leading online retailers in Japan that has never failed in our business plans. However, in reality, the problems are just piling up.

For starters, Onagawa has the disadvantage of being in a remote location, but our company should be able to overcome this issue, as our Komatsushima and Wadajima sites in Tokushima have already proven that they could produce good results. Onagawa also has only one national highway nearby, but they should be fine. Therefore, we have to focus on the lack of people to hire.

We are aiming to create a “Town of Music”, so the immediate goal is to employ more staff members who love and play music, and to expand business while operating music schools in the local community of Onagawa. I have a feeling that this plan can be realized because we have been receiving a lot of job applications every day since we posted job listings in magazines and on the Internet. I am very grateful for that. At first, I had hoped to receive applications from all over Japan, but almost all of them were from Miyagi Prefecture. That may still be enough.

However, we are working on local development and job creation, and we have to increase the number of people living in Onagawa to help stop the population decline. I think that even if the surrounding commuter towns were to grow, it will not lead to true development if Onagawa’s population does not increase. Therefore, one of the keys to success is figuring out how to find members from other areas in Japan who are willing to move to Onagawa and start entrusting their faith into building their lives in this town.

Nevertheless, even if a number of people wish to move to Onagawa now, they cannot find housing there. I’ve heard that there are also income restrictions for public housing, and that those who have a certain amount of income cannot move in. There are practically no vacant houses or apartments. Hence, the only way out for Sound House is to purchase land and build our company-owned house. That is what we currently are working on. Construction has been delayed due to the rising cost of materials, but it is expected to be done eventually. The construction of this company-owned house will contribute to the development of the town to some extent.

The biggest problem, as I expected, is the town population. The number of children is especially small, many move out of Onagawa to enter high schools in Ishinomaki or Sendai. Only a few young people return to Onagawa once they leave, and the percentage of women also appears to be too low. The lack of women in particular is due to Onagawa’s industrial structure of fishermen and nuclear power plants, which created the image that Onagawa is a man’s town. The lack of a good working environment for women also makes Onagawa seem like a difficult place for women to live. Moreover, I heard that there is an issue of increasing cases of domestic violence among the younger generation, and this concern is what is causing the significant number of family breakdowns. This terrible situation makes it impossible for children to want to return to Onagawa. Is there anything that we can do?

This is why Sound House has decided to appeal to the public to create a “Town of Music” in Onagawa. We also are committed to playing a part in creating a town where young people can find jobs they will want to do. The key to success is the townspeople and especially the children are extremely important. If the children are allowed to enjoy music after school, practice their instruments, and play music together with other people, this alone will enrich their memories of Onagawa and help them to feel more attachment to their hometown. They will make more connections through their relationships with their music teachers and their fellow students, and they will have more opportunities to interact with people in their local community. And, once this new generation of potential musicians from Onagawa grow up and become famous through online concerts, people from Onagawa will start to feel more attachment to their hometown.

This is my dream, but the road ahead is still long and treacherous. We will take one step at a time, starting right where we are to make this dream come true.