Food brings hope for tomorrow.
Yasuyuki Umemori's mission

A sushi party in a hospital became the starting point for his mission

— What personal experience helped you recognize that mission?

President Umemori　When my daughter was in hospital, Christmas Eve came around during a break in treatment. There isn't much to look forward to in a hospital, is there? Since we were in the sushi business, I thought we could throw a hand-rolled sushi party. So I brought seaweed, toppings and sushi rice.

The children were so pleased. I said, "Shall we make some nigiri sushi too?" We did, and they were smiling as they made it. Some of those children later passed away.

That made me think. For those of us who are healthy, eating is something we do because we're hungry. But for those children, perhaps eating was hope for tomorrow, the courage to keep living. That's what I began to understand.

— Did you immediately think of that experience as your mission?

President Umemori　I didn't realize it at the sushi party. Later, I was talking about our business philosophy and vision with a senior member of a study group, and he asked me, "Do you have a mission?"

A mission—a purpose to devote your life to. When he put it that way, I said, "I don't have anything that weighty." And he gave me a scolding. On the way home, it came to me quite quickly: "Could that be it?" It was the hand-rolled sushi party I mentioned earlier.

Something born from your own experience has a different authenticity. If all you have is knowledge you've picked up from others, it's still only something you've heard. What you've actually experienced is real. But you may not get the chance to recognize what it means.

When everything is going brilliantly, you don't notice. It may be a failure or a major setback that makes you stop and think, "Maybe..." I think that's where you can begin to see that perhaps you have a role to play.

A life he can look back on and say, "I gave it my all"

— How has having a mission changed your everyday business decisions?

President Umemori　Now I have that mission as a foundation, so whatever I'm thinking of doing, I return to it. You can't build a house on shaky foundations, can you? With a firm mission in place, I have something to look back to and return to when things happen. And when I move forward, I'm always thinking about acting from that foundation.

Recently, someone approached us about a vegan project. From the start, we've said nationality, race, gender, disability, illness and religion shouldn't be barriers, so it fits perfectly with our mission. If something falls within the kind of work we do, I want to give it a try and see whether we can be of help.

— Does working in line with your mission also give you a sense of purpose?

President Umemori　I think it makes a huge difference. People often say that working means making life easier for those around you. Whether you're wealthy or not, I think the meaning of work is the same.

— Finally, what would you like to pass on to future generations?

President Umemori　I'm not doing this just to succeed. But I think, in the end, things will probably work out as a result. It may take a little time, though.

We've never had some spectacular success. I'm still out there doing the work, building on it day by day. When I get toward the end of my life, I want to be able to say, "I gave it my all." That's the kind of life I want.

And if that can help those around me, other people, society—then all the better. I feel my life will have meant more if I can reach a wider circle of people rather than a smaller one.

If we're living as members of society, we need to move toward a society where people work together and think about how to make things better. That's something I want to pass on to the people whose lives I touch.