Service Design for Innovating Hospitality Business in Japan

This research elaborates the challenges of Japanese traditional inns known as ryokan to shift from traditional hospitality practices, where the author worked closely for several years with Ibusuki Hakusuikan, a luxurious ryokan located in southern Japan. The research aimed to co-create service together with various stakeholders of the ryokan and the entire service ecosystem of the region located from a macro lense. This article articulates a service design integrating last-mile mobility for both guests and the employees of the ryokan and contributes in a beneficial way to each actor in the landscape, not just towards themselves but also in a larger scope for further business growth in the hospitality sector. Reflecting on qualitative data such as ethnographies, diaries, interviews, and user study analysis, it investigates how the service design journey went, and concludes by giving practical recommendations as design principles for academics and practitioners who plan to co-create value in similar projects dealing with shifts from traditional customs.