Author Archives: Martin

I’m a German-Canadian dual citizen and have lived in Japan with my wife for over 10 years. I own and operate the Fukushima and Kotoen franchises and have a partnership in the parent company.

A Great Gift From A Student at Smith’s School in Kotoen ( スミス英会話 甲東園校 )

The Wine Tasting Course at my Smith’s School of English Franchise in Kotoen is taking off and one senior man who is particularly interested in European food brought an extraordinary gift to the classroom the other day.
Although he laments that the economy really isn’t all that great and that it really isn’t very likely to [...]

Valentine’s At Ijinkan Starbucks With My Wife and an Ice Wine Valentine’s At Smith’s School of English in Kotoen ( スミス英会話 甲東園校 ワインテイスティングクラス )

Well Valentine’s has come and gone again and, although I was given no less than 2.5 kgs of chocolate from students and from my darling competitive wife Yoko, I still managed to keep weight at an appropriate level!
The discovery of chocolate this year has been more of an all-out indulgence into quantity rather than the more refined [...]

Ice Wine For Valentine – A Special Wine Tasting Class At My Smith’s School in Kotoen ( スミス英会話 甲東園校 ) ( ワインテイスティングクラス )

Valentine’s Day is coming up pretty soon and the department stores and confectioners are going to be doing great business selling chocolate.
I just love the Japanese custom of women giving men chocolate!  Now some men may not want to admit it, but I am German and not at all shy to admit that I absolutely love [...]

Local Promotion 8 : A Fabulous Flyer Story

The most wonderful thing happened this week doing flyers for my Smith’s School in Kotoen, Nishinomiya (  スミス英会話 甲東園校  ) and I’d like to share it with you.
I have reliable flyer teams running at two adjacent stations simultaneously, Kotoen where my school is located and Nigawa, the next major station north on the border of Nishinomiya and [...]

Local Promotion Part 7 : Signboards, Posters and Flags

Many of you fellow franchisees have an absolutely wonderful street presentation!   For others it may be true that you are physically unable to use sign boards or posters, yet there are still others who could consider investing in some more good signage.  This post reminds you to take a look at our Smith’s Promotional Items page and [...]

Merry Christmas And A Happy New Year To All !!

Best wishes to all of you during the holiday season and in the tiger year coming up.   May your lives be rich, healthy and happy and a good step closer to fulfilling your dreams!   Drive carefully if you’re out on the roads and try not to gain too much weight!  I know my challenge will be to eat as much [...]

Local Promotion Part 6 : The Smith’s School of English Sweatshirt ! Nothing is more comfortable in November !

Even though the join fee campaign is over and we are entering the final week of November, there are still a good 2 or 3 weeks of productive flyer time left in the year.  Why not get back out there this week and next with your regular flyers and start laying the seeds for the big sales season starting [...]

Driving #13: Natural Flora and Fauna

Hello!   For all you nature lovers out there, if you thought such a populated and developed country would not long support the existence of indigenous and often rare species of plants and animals, you’re wrong!   Japan is home to hundreds of species of semi-tropical plants as well as at least 45 unique species of mammals and [...]

Driving in Japan Chapter 12 : 4×4 Country in Kansai

Hello everyone!    A fair number of us come from countries with a lot of space and nature, countries like Canada and Australia for example, and those of us fond of getting lost in the outdoors might not normally consider Japan as synonymous with serious off-road 4×4-ing.   The surprise is that it really is possible to really [...]

Fireworks Festivals Update 2009 !! ( 花火大会 )

Hey look everyone!   Most of you know that my wife Yoko and I are tirelessly dedicated summer fireworks festival revelers and this year promises to be one of the best ever.   It’s cheap entertainment, and with the economy in a less-than-ideal condition, we expect more festivals to gain popularity and a bigger-than-average turnout at most of [...]

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