It's fur real, Hinichijou café expansion gives paws for thought
A customer takes a photo of the furry paw-shaped glove at Hinichijou café on Wukang Road.
The Hinichijou café brand, also known as the "bear paw café" plans to open 100 outlets across the country, with half of its employees people with disabilities.
The quirky café sprung up on Yongkang Rd, Xuhui District, in December 2020. Customers scan a QR code hanging on the café wall to place a coffee order. When complete, a takeaway cup is handed out from a hole in the wall by a brown paw. Customers can interact with the paw while they are waiting.
The brand has since opened outlets in Hangzhou in neighboring Zhejiang Province, Nanjing in neighboring Jiangsu and Wuhan in central Hubei, Zhang Yue, the human resources manager of the café, told the monthly Hui Forum.
In Shanghai, additional outlets have been opened in the Lujiazui financial hub, the North Bund and the Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall.
"Seventy percent of the employees are deaf-mute," said Zhang.
The brand was created to provide more employment opportunities for people with disabilities.
Zhang Yue, the human resources manager of the Hinichijou café, shares the stories of the brand at the monthly Hui Forum on Saturday.
"The café brand aims to create a stage for people with disabilities to realize their values and dreams," said Zhang.
The payment for a barista is the same as that of the other café outlets in the market, while the store managers will own shares in the company.
The café is part of Xuhui's efforts to develop a 15-minute cultural life circle for citizens living in the downtown region.
Apart from innovative coffee shops and street stores, various art exhibitions, public activities and micro renovation campaigns are being launched in the district.
A public art exhibition named "Beautiful Books" has been held at multiple public art spaces in Xuhui since May. Readers are encouraged to recommend their favorite books and paint a small flower to present their dreams or wishes. These flowers will create an art installation in the center of the exhibition.
A mother who once suffered from depression drew four people on the flower. She said her husband and two children had become the cure for her illness, said Liang Liang, the curator of the exhibition.
"We'd like to encourage people to share their curative experiences or books with others through the exhibition," Liang said.
Liang Liang, curator of the exhibition, "Beautiful Books".
