日時 2017 年12月2日（土）8時30分～12時30分
内容 宮城県石巻市雄勝町の産業と観光の振興を目的として企画・制作した「ほってぇ皿」の販売体験会
場所 道の駅「上品の郷」（宮城県石巻市小船越二子北下１−１）
対象 雄勝小学校 5 年生及び 6 年生 10 名
講師
昨年度のこども芸術カンパニー「OGATSU 7」の6年生が卒業し、旧・大須小学校と合併し新たな5～6年生10名によって構成された「OGATSU X」。
今回は、2年間の活動の最終目標となる「ほってぇ皿」の販売をおこないました。
売り場の準備
9:00の開店に間に合うように、第4回目のワークショップで立てた販売計画に基づいて売り場を準備します。「A級品」と「B級品」の2種類の価格があるので、それぞれ青い紙と赤い紙に表示し、商品には青いシールと赤いシールを貼ることで、一目で価格が分かる工夫もおこないました。
販売体験
ほってぇ皿販売のうわさを聞きつけて、開店前から待っているお客さんがいました。開店と同時にお客さんが次々と入店し、ほってぇ皿の売り場にも多くの人が訪れました。少し緊張気味だったOGATSU Xの面々をよそに、ほってぇ皿はどんどん売れていきます。あらかじめ商品の袋の中に取り扱い説明書などを入れておいたり、梱包材を使いやすい大きさに切っておいたりと、販売体験中も手分けして様々な改善を行い、次第に手際よく商品を提供できるようになりました。
午前中で完売！
合計130枚近くのほってぇ皿は、なんと午前中で完売！最後の1枚が売れた瞬間、こども達から歓声が上がりました。
今回の販売体験会は、2日前の11月30日に「石巻かほく」の記事で紹介して頂きました。お客さまの中には、「新聞記事を見て来た」という雄勝小学校OB・OGの方や、津波被害の為に移転を余儀なくされた元雄勝町の方が多くいらっしゃいました。今は雄勝から離れてしまっているけれども、OGATSU Xの活動はとても嬉しいという応援のメッセージもたくさん頂きました。
お買い上げ頂いた皆さま、ありがとうございます。また、多くの方々にご支援、ご協力を賜り、2年間の活動で、調査・企画から制作、販売体験までを行うことができました。この場を借りてお礼申し上げます。
1.6 Children's Art Company OGATSU X: Shell Plates #5 (sales experience fair)
Date: 8:30–12:30, Saturday, December 2, 2017
Contents: OGATSU X members held a sales experience fair to sell their Shell Plates at a large commercial complex in Ishinomaki, Miyagi.
Venue: Futakokitasimo1-1, Kofunakoshi, Ishinomaki-shi, Miyagi, 986-0132, Japan
Target: Elementary school fifth grade to sixth grade
Instructors:
In the sixth installment of OGATSU X's Shell Plate project, the children achieved their final goal after two years: holding a sales experience fair to sell their Shell Plates at Michi no Eki – Joubon no Sato in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture.
Before opening their doors at 9:00 A.M., the children prepared their sales space according to the display plan they had formulated themselves. A-rank products and B-rank products were given two different prices, written on blue and red paper, respectively. The children also affixed blue and red stickers to the products as a clever way of making it clear what each item’s price was at a glance.
As soon as the doors opened, people started to stream in until the sales area was packed with people cheek by jowl. Some customers heard rumors of the sale and had lined up at the doors before they even opened. Despite the nervous expressions on the faces of the children, their Shell Plates flew off the shelves. They had made preparations beforehand, such as putting an owner’s manual in each product bag and cutting their packaging materials into easy-to-use sizes, and they worked together to make improvements and adjustments during the sale as well. As a result, they were able to provide the product to their customers without issue.
The nearly 130 Shell Plates sold out in the three hours from 9:00 A.M. to 12:00 P.M. As the last plate was sold, the children cheered aloud. Their sales experience fair had been publicized two days earlier in the November 30th edition of the local newspaper, Ishinomaki Kahoku. Many alumni of Ogatsu Elementary School and former residents of Ogatsu, who had been forced to move due to damage caused by the tsunami, said they had come—some with babies in tow—after seeing the article. Many people sent messages saying that although they were far away from Ogatsu now, they were happy to see OGATSU X's activities and were supporting them from afar. We appreciate everyone who bought a plate or supported this activity in any way.
Over the past two years, the project in Ogatsu has moved beyond a workshop for children, and become a much larger movement that includes the entire community. Through these activities, it has become clear that it is not only the children who need support; the entire local community, including craftspeople in the area and local residents, need support as well. We will continue these activities in the hope that one day Shell Plates will become a strongly-rooted local specialty that can be found in every home in Ogatsu.
