A record number of tourists visited Japan last year -- over 13 million. They spent more than $16 billion, another record. The country's tax exemption program for international visitors likely has something to do with that, and stores along the Sea of Japan coast want a share of the profits.
Ishikawa Prefecture has been drawing more sightseers since the Hokuriku bullet train line opened in March. In the first 4 months, a tourist information counter at Kanazawa station has seen a 40% increase in people from overseas compared to the year before. Many of them arrive from Tokyo aboard the new Shinkansen line.
Retailers of local handicrafts are rushing to register as tax-free stores. They hope that will convince travelers to spend time and money in their establishments. A shop specializing in Japanese drums is among them. The development is something new in the company's 400-year history.
At tax-free stores, visitors from abroad don't have to pay the 8% consumption tax for things costing more than about $80, so the tourists tend to spend more on goods and services.
A shopper from Germany says she bought an assortment of souvenirs including small taikos for her children. Another tourist from the US says he spent about 46,000 yen. He says he came to the store because it's duty-free, meaning he can buy even more, and he loves it.
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/onbusiness/20150715.html
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