Oswego is now one of seven Daiso store locations in Illinois. Since opening on Feb. 8, people have been flocking to the Japanese store, filling up aisles, and wanting to see what makes it so special.
“Daiso has been in Japan for 48 years,” said Daiso worker Wendy Wong. ” We have thousands of stores in every town everywhere in Japan, and out of Japan we are all over Asia, Australia, and Europe and other countries.”
“[But] this is the first store in Midwest that has [the] standard product [section],” she added.
The standard product section of the store displays items such as ceramics, glassware, and other well-made products at a slightly higher price than the rest of the store.
“It’s kind of like a minimalist aesthetic…like solid colors, monotone, things like that,” said store lead Matthew Adolfo.
If customers are looking for something a little cheaper, then the other half of the store might sound more appealing.
“Usually when you go to a Japanese stationary store in a mall or something, it’s like really overpriced, but the thing is Daiso is so cheap,” said OH senior Mariana Corral.
Since Daiso sells Japanese and other Asian products, the store has conveniently placed signs for customers to convert the prices from Japanese Yen into USD. However, some items’ price points are low enough to not have a price tag at all.
“Just the other day, there’s this really cool bowl this customer was showing me, asking what the price was, and she wasn’t too sure if it was $1.75 because if there’s not a price tag on it, then it’s $1.75 usually for most things,” said Adolfo.
Daiso started as a street vending shop in Japan and was founded in 1977. The company later grew into a global industry.
“[The] makeup brushes, it’s handmade in Japan, but look at the price it’s amazing, and the quality is very, very good,” said Wong. “In Japan, people who make this, they just focus on making one thing… because they want to do their best, and they focus on what they’re doing. These are people [who have] been making it for generations.”
Unlike Japan, lots of America’s large chains of big-industry stores may feel out of touch or boring to local communities, selling items in mass-production factories. As a result, local customers are happy to have a store like Daiso in Oswego.
“We have Target, TJ Max, Ross, Michael’s, you can find that anywhere in Illinois, but it’s kind of hard to find things from different cultures, like a Japanese stationary store, without having to go somewhere far away,” said Corral.
Not only is the store extending its Japanese culture into Oswego, but it offers a similar feel to buying goods in Japan as well.
“Basically, if you walk through Daiso in Japan, it’s the exact same layout. I was lucky to have been to Daiso in Japan. I used to live in Japan…so basically all the layouts are the same, and it’s just that the space is a little bit more here,” said Wong.
While the store may have more space than Daisos in Japan, that doesn’t stop customers from occupying every inch of the popular store here.
“I feel like it’s really packed when you go. I don’t know if it’s because it’s new, but there are so many people there, especially on the weekends, but I would recommend going on the evenings of weeknights: empty,” said OH senior Lydia Freeman.
According to their website, Daiso is looking to expand as several more locations are expected to open in Illinois in the near future.
I am a senior and this is my first year as a student journalist for 42Fifty. I currently play the trumpet in the OHS Marching Band and I am a member of BIONIC as well. I am excited for learning and gaining experience in journalism this year. You can contact me by emailing 42Fifty@sd308.org and putting my name in the subject line. We welcome comments on our articles and feedback on our publication!
This is such a great article! So glad to see 42Fifty featuring this great new staple!!