Sun, Jun 18, 2023 page12

• The race is on for Japanese baseball’s ‘uriko’ beer vendors

  Commission-based wages means it pays for these unique vendors to work fast, and despite carrying a keg of up to 15kg for upward of three hours, they sell about 20,000 glasses of beer at a night game

  • By Andrew McKirdy / AFP, TOKYO
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  In between chanting fans at Japan’s Tokyo Dome baseball stadium race an army of women in fluorescent uniforms carrying unwieldy backpacks with attached spray-guns.

  These are the “uriko” — beer vendors who are as unique to Japanese baseball as the cheering sections that beat drums and blow horns to rally their teams.

  Made up almost exclusively of young women in miniskirts or shorts, the tradition might appear outdated to some.

  

  Beer vendor Mariko Matsumoto serves customers during a baseball game at the Tokyo Dome stadium on April 28.

  Photo: AFP
  Warning: Excessive consumption of alcohol can damage your health

  Japan has had its own low-key #MeToo movement, and women have in the past few years challenged everything from high heels at work to traditions requiring they serve tea to colleagues.

  However, the uriko remain a firm favorite with fans of Japan’s most popular sport, which attracts a diverse crowd of men and women, as well as many families.

  Honoka Hagiwara, who carries a keg weighing up to 15kg on her back for upward of three hours at a time, said she was attracted by the job’s “glamorous” image.

  

  Beer vendor Honoka Hagiwara waits while her beer kegs are changed during a baseball game at the Tokyo Dome.

  Photo: AFP
  Warning: Excessive consumption of alcohol can damage your health

  “I’ve been doing it for just over a year now, and I’ve got much more used to it,” the 22-year-old said.

  She said that it was “physically very tough” at first, but she now enjoys the highly competitive job, with more than 100 rivals working any given game.

  At Tokyo Dome, home to Japan’s most popular baseball team, the Yomiuri Giants, vendors sell an average of about 20,000 glasses of beer at a night game.

  All the stadium’s vendors are women, although some men are employed at other stadiums in Japan.

  It used to be the other way around: Until the 1980s, most vendors were men who sold beer from flat tables slung around their necks.

  Tokyo Dome said the job is still open to anyone.

  “There is not and will not be any obstacle standing in the way of men being employed,” a Tokyo Dome spokeswoman said.

  Yet “around 100 times more” women apply than men, “so the result is that there are no men,” she said.

  Uriko Mariko Matsumoto said she enjoys interacting with fans, and has built up a relationship with regulars.

  The 25-year-old said she treats her customers the way she wants vendors to serve her at a game.

  “I like going to watch baseball games myself, and when I see a vendor smiling, it makes me want to buy a drink,” Matsumoto said.

  However, not all vendors have such a positive view of the job.

  One former uriko said that the job was “creepy, creepy, creepy,” on a blogging site hosted by the Asahi Shimbun newspaper.

  “It didn’t take me long to realize that I wasn’t only selling beer and snacks — I was selling myself,” said the author, who complained of customers asking to take her photograph and giving her unwanted business cards.

  Security is on hand should drunk supporters get out of line, but trouble is rare at Japanese baseball games, which are a family day out for many.

  Matsumoto said that her main concern is sales, and she is “always thinking” about her numbers.

  “You’re paying attention to how much the others have sold and you’re ... trying to sell more than you did the day before,” she said.

  Commission-based wages means it pays to work fast, although Hagiwara said that not keeping the customer waiting is the “top priority.”

  While vendors are technically not allowed to run in the stands or on the stadium concourse, they are often seen racing from customer to customer.

  They are easy to spot in brightly colored uniforms and artificial flowers in their hair beneath high-brimmed caps.

  Some wear knee pads, as they have to bend down while serving to avoid obstructing the view.

  They change kegs about 10 or 12 times a night with a speed that would put some Formula One pit stops to shame.

  As support staff lift out the empty keg and replace it with a new one, vendors barely have time for a sip of cold tea — and sitting down for a breather is out of the question.

  Hagiwara said more men should try the job, but not everyone at Tokyo Dome was so sure.

  “A man? I’ve never thought about that,” said Sachiko Shibuya, 64, watching the game with her friend.

  Yoshie Eki, 59, said she was not bothered who was dispensing the drinks.

  “If I’m coming to the ballpark, I’m going to buy beer — it gets you more in the mood,” she said.
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