Have you heard of “Kurashiki Afternoon Tea,” an event where you can enjoy food made with fresh fruit from Kurashiki and Okayama at restaurants in Kurashiki?
Kurashiki Afternoon Tea began in the summer of 2015.
From the following year, 2016, it was held twice a year, in summer and winter. Initially, nine shops participated, mainly in the Bikan Historical Area, but the winter 2020 event had a record 27 participating shops.
They held a photo contest, and the event apparently became known to people outside the prefecture as Instagram grew in popularity.
However, to the dismay of many, the event ended on March 15, 2020.
With the passionate desire to “keep Kurashiki Afternoon Tea going and revitalize the community,” an organizing committee was formed to continue the event.
We spoke with executive committee chair Miki Morita and Kyoichi Kobayashi of kobacoffee, a participating shop and member of the organizing committee.
Here, we share their stories about taking on crowdfunding and their desire to revitalize the community!
The Kurashiki Afternoon Tea crowdfunding campaign reached its goal on April 20, 2020, and ended on April 30.
▼For the latest information, please also see the following article.
The information presented was current when this article was published in April 2020. Please note that it may differ from current information.
What Is Kurashiki Afternoon Tea?
Afternoon tea is a British tea-drinking tradition: an elegant gathering where people enjoy light meals and sweets with tea.
Inspired by this tradition, Kurashiki Afternoon Tea, incorporating the character of Kurashiki, began in the summer of 2015 (July 10 to September 30).
Kurashiki Afternoon Tea lets you enjoy fresh fruit from Kurashiki and Okayama in a little luxury.
From 2016 onward, the event was held twice a year, in summer and winter.
The summer Kurashiki Afternoon Tea features grapes or peaches.
The winter Kurashiki Afternoon Tea always includes strawberries and warm dishes.
With the aim of encouraging visitors to spend time relaxing in Kurashiki, every shop offers drinks as “two cups included, free refills, or served in a pot.”
The food is arranged on two or more tiers, making for a very impressive presentation!
Prices vary by shop, but are expected to range from 1,650 to 4,000 yen (tax included).
We Want to Keep Kurashiki Afternoon Tea Going: Taking on Crowdfunding
When Kurashiki Afternoon Tea began in 2015, the plan was for the event, led by the local government, to run for three years.
However, as the end of its third year approached in 2017, people around them said, “It would be a shame to stop when interest and popularity are growing,” and an additional two years were approved.
The winter 2020 event marked its fifth year, and government support finally came to an end.
Fans of Kurashiki Afternoon Tea who learned it was ending voiced their desire for it to continue: “We want it to go on!”
A private-sector organizing committee for Kurashiki Afternoon Tea was formed, led by Miki Morita, who had been involved in launching the event as a staff member of the Kurashiki Tourism and Convention Bureau.
The other organizing committee members are as follows:
- kobacoffee: Kyoichi Kobayashi
- Candle Taku Watanabe-tei: Ryoji Inoue
- Kurashiki Momoko: Atsuro Kusudo
- 72cafe: Shinya Fujiwara
With government support ending, they decided to take on crowdfunding in preparation for holding the event in summer 2020.
Crowdfunding is a term combining “crowd” and “funding.” It is a way to raise money from people who sympathize with your cause or want to support your activities by sharing your work or dreams online.
First, we asked Kyoichi Kobayashi, owner of kobacoffee, one of the shops that had participated since Kurashiki Afternoon Tea began, about his thoughts on the event and the challenges involved.
The Kurashiki Afternoon Tea crowdfunding campaign reached its goal on April 20, 2020, and ended on April 30.
Interview with Kyoichi Kobayashi, Owner of kobacoffee
What Led kobacoffee to Participate in Kurashiki Afternoon Tea
I heard that Kurashiki Afternoon Tea began in 2015 and that kobacoffee has participated from the very beginning.
What led you to take part?
Kobayashi
It started when Ms. Morita, who was then a staff member of the Kurashiki Tourism and Convention Bureau, told me, “We’re thinking up a new project, and I’m thinking of doing something called afternoon tea.”
I agreed with the project’s aim of revitalizing the community and making the event known to customers from outside the prefecture, so I decided to participate.
kobacoffee’s Kurashiki Afternoon Tea: Special Touches and Challenges
I imagine it started out as a process of trial and error.
Could you tell us about the difficulties and challenges, as well as the special touches in kobacoffee’s Kurashiki Afternoon Tea?
Kobayashi
At first, I consulted Kurashiki Sakuyo University, which we already had a relationship with. We had students come up with afternoon tea menu ideas as part of their classes, then developed them through repeated trial runs.
The cream puff shaped like a swan, a symbol of the Bikan Historical Area, has been a standard menu item since the event began in 2015.
Our shop had always focused mainly on coffee, so both I and my employees struggled to adjust to doing something we had never done before.
We served peaches and grapes, which we had never handled at the shop before, and learned how to work with them.
Every time, we thought about the menu, saying, “Next time, let’s try this or that.”
What Was Good About Taking Part in Kurashiki Afternoon Tea
Could you tell us what you were glad about or enjoyed after starting Kurashiki Afternoon Tea?
Kobayashi
We used to accept same-day reservations for Kurashiki Afternoon Tea, and half of the people who came to the event were visitors from outside the prefecture.
It made me happy when visitors from outside the prefecture who dropped in and ordered on the day enjoyed it.
There were also women who had come to Okayama from outside the prefecture for work or school and came with their mothers, enjoying afternoon tea together as mother and daughter.
It was great that we could make not only people in Kurashiki City but also visitors from outside the prefecture happy.
I think one of the attractions of Kurashiki Afternoon Tea is that it lets us promote fruit grown in Okayama.
How We Decided to Continue Kurashiki Afternoon Tea
What made you decide to continue Kurashiki Afternoon Tea?
Kobayashi
When we said that winter 2020 would be the last, so many people said, “What?!”
Some shops can hold afternoon tea on their own.
But if possible, getting the shops together makes it easier to attract more customers.
I thought that if we could continue, we should give it a try.
I also said, “If Ms. Morita is going to chair the organizing committee, I’ll help out” (laughs).
Rewards for kobacoffee’s Crowdfunding Campaign to Continue Kurashiki Afternoon Tea
Could you tell us about the crowdfunding reward for continuing kobacoffee’s Kurashiki Afternoon Tea, “Make a One-of-a-Kind Coffee at a Traditional House Cafe!”?
Kobayashi
It’s a hands-on reward where I teach participants how to brew coffee once or twice, then they can blend the coffee we use at our shop however they like.
We plan to make three blends, and participants can take home one they like as a souvenir.
Each blend has its own character, such as “my wake-up coffee” or “my own blend.”
I hope this experience will give people an opportunity to create a coffee that suits them.
We also hold coffee classes so people can experience the fun and deliciousness of coffee. If you’re interested, please feel free to contact us.
Our Feelings About Kurashiki Afternoon Tea
Finally, please tell us how you feel about Kurashiki Afternoon Tea.
Kobayashi
I hope it will become an event that visitors from outside the prefecture can casually say, “Let’s go to Kurashiki for afternoon tea!”
I’d be happy if Kurashiki Afternoon Tea could help energize the community.
Interview with Miki Morita, Chair of the Kurashiki Afternoon Tea Organizing Committee
How Kurashiki Afternoon Tea got started
Ms. Morita, I understand you were involved in launching Kurashiki Afternoon Tea.
How did the event get started?
Morita
It began when members in their 20s and 30s from the Kurashiki Tourism Division and the Kurashiki Tourism and Convention Bureau were asked to plan an event that captured the essence of Kurashiki.
We got together to discuss ideas, but we couldn’t come up with anything good.
During the discussion, someone mentioned, “I had afternoon tea the other day! It was so wonderful, I was really impressed!” That gave us an idea.
We thought, “That could work!” When you think of Kurashiki, you think of fresh peaches and grapes.
Although the area is a fruit-growing region, there hadn’t been an opportunity to eat the fruit fresh, so we planned the event on the condition that it would feature fresh peaches and grapes.
The challenges of putting on Kurashiki Afternoon Tea
What did you find challenging?
Morita
The first year was definitely the hardest.
To begin with, we had to start by explaining what “afternoon tea” was.
We explained to the shop owners what afternoon tea involved and asked them to buy stands for serving the food.
I can’t thank enough the shops that supported our desire to energize Kurashiki, even though they didn’t know whether customers would come to the event.
What inspired you to share Kurashiki’s appeal
Could you tell us what led you to work in tourism in Kurashiki and to start sharing what makes Kurashiki special on your personal social media accounts?
Morita
Originally, I wasn’t interested in Kurashiki, where I was born and raised, so I went to university outside the prefecture.
But while I was at university, I saw all kinds of things disappear…
Long-established shops closed, and the local shopping street grew quieter and quieter.
My grandparents ran a small bookstore in town.
They said they were going to close the shop just as I was job hunting.
I thought the bookstore would survive if I took it over, but at the time I didn’t have the confidence to run it, so I didn’t.
But if I’d found the courage then, the bookstore wouldn’t have disappeared.
I thought the town would become lonely again, and that regret is what drives me today.
I joined the Kurashiki Tourism and Convention Bureau because I didn’t want to see even one more light go out in town, and I wanted to work for Kurashiki.
I love traveling overseas and often go abroad. When I walked around the Bikan Historical Area again, I thought, “This place is wonderful too.”
I came to want people around the world to learn more about what makes Kurashiki special.
Of course, I’d love tourists to visit, but I also want more local people from Kurashiki to come to the Bikan Historical Area.
How you became chair of the Kurashiki Afternoon Tea Organizing Committee
Could you tell us how you became chair of the Kurashiki Afternoon Tea Organizing Committee?
Morita
Government support ended in winter 2020, so it had to be run by the private sector. I guess I was the only person in the private sector who knew about Kurashiki Afternoon Tea (laughs).
Of course, the fans of Kurashiki Afternoon Tea mattered, but what made the biggest difference was that the participating shops said, “It would be a shame to let this end.”
I’d heard that everyone was busy and having a hard time during the Kurashiki Afternoon Tea event period.
But their desire to keep it going, despite the difficulties, because they wanted to energize Kurashiki encouraged me.
I thought, if there’s something I can do, I want to give it my all, and set up the private Kurashiki Afternoon Tea Organizing Committee.
Crowdfunding to keep Kurashiki Afternoon Tea going
Could you tell us about the crowdfunding campaign to keep Kurashiki Afternoon Tea going?
Morita
First, we’ll prepare for the event to be held in summer 2020.
We’ll continue beyond the one summer event, with another in winter 2021 and then the following summer.
We plan to hold the event twice a year, in summer and winter, and aim to run it for three years.
The goal is to use the funds raised through this crowdfunding campaign to complete the event website and hold the event.
How you feel about Kurashiki Afternoon Tea
Finally, please tell us how you feel about Kurashiki Afternoon Tea!
Morita
This may overlap with what Mr. Kobayashi from Koba Coffee said, but I’d like to make it a Kurashiki brand that people can enjoy whenever they visit Kurashiki.
I want to change the situation where people who come to Kurashiki from outside the prefecture say, “I don’t know what to eat in Kurashiki.”
Please support us as we work toward that!
From the Writer
Kurashiki Afternoon Tea is an event I love, too.
In our interviews, we heard the passionate wish that, through shops across Kurashiki—including not only the Bikan Historical Area but also Tamashima and Kojima—we want people who have never tried Kurashiki Afternoon Tea to learn more about the appeal of Kurashiki’s food.
I hope the desire to energize Kurashiki reaches as many people as possible.
![[Ended] Kurashiki Afternoon Tea (held July 20–September 30, 2020) — A little luxury where you can take your time savoring seasonal peaches and grapes](https://media.kuratoco.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/23043107/DSC09099.jpg)
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