Launches “Dining Out Project” to Promote the Revitalization of Regional Economies

Hakuhodo DY Media Partners Incorporated (HDYMP) is pleased to announce the launch of “the Dining Out Project” to revitalize regional economies. Dining Out uses food as a medium for reorganizing and bringing out new value in the surviving natural beauty, traditional culture, history, goods and other assets of local communities. HDYMP is based in Minato-ku, Tokyo and is headed by president and CEO Hisao Omori.

The Dining Out Project harnesses HDYMP’s editing and planning value creation expertise and close partnerships with media content holders and creators to permanently reenergize regional economies. In order to discover new charm and create new value unique to a particular region, famous creators will be invited to become partners in regional projects that work with regional governments, NPOs, and other organizations to identify original concepts from the region’s unique natural beauty, traditional culture, history, goods, and the like that will become new regional values.

In addition, the creator personally leads project participants on tours and other activities that embody the concept. What’s more, a restaurant is opened for a limited time at the location that best symbolizes the project concept where a chef creates a unique presentation of new local dishes using local ingredients based on the concept.

In addition to a region’s fundamental appeal, introducing the outside perspective of creator and chef uncovers and reconstructs new regional values, and publicizing the effort through the media taps into new tourist demand and delivers new added value for regional foods. Moreover, organizing Dining Out in the same region over the seasons contributes to regional economies that stay energetic year round.

The project’s first undertaking is Dining Out Sado, which opens in October in Sado City, Niigata Prefecture. East Asia scholar Alex Kerr, renowned for his profound knowledge of traditional Japanese culture, and chef Chikara Yamada, who trained at Spain’s famous elBulli restaurant and who has developed his own unique style, collaborate on appreciating the regional culture of Sado in a new way.

There are places all over Japan that still have the same alluring natural beauty as in ancient times and with unique local cultures and histories. With the Dining Out Project, HDYMP will both reinterpret universal Japanese traditional cultural values that transcend time and regional character and contribute to the permanent revitalization of regional economies.

What’s more, by raising the brand value of the Dining Out Project itself we will endeavor to create even greater social value by fusing the revitalization of regional economies with corporate marketing communication.