Lawson has opened an experimental store called Real x Tech Lawson on June 23, 2025, in Tokyo’s Takanawa Gateway City.

The location also hosts the new headquarters of telecom giant KDDI, which co-owns Lawson with a 50% stake.

The store features advanced technologies such as robotics, AI, and digital signage aimed at improving efficiency and collecting operational data.

A robot prepares Kara-age Kun fried chicken, another cleans the store, and digital panels display product information and local event details.

A key feature is the self-checkout system with a 3D avatar of a Lawson employee offering remote assistance.

The store also uses cameras and tags to monitor stock and employee workloads, while AI systems suggest operational improvements.

KDDI, which co-owns Lawson with Mitsubishi Corporation, collaborated on the project.

The store will serve as a testing ground for solutions before wider rollout.

🔗 Source: The Japan Times

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ Japan’s demographic crisis drives retail automation nationwide

Lawson’s tech-powered store reflects a national initiative beyond just one company’s innovation strategy.

The Japanese government has been actively promoting convenience store automation since 2019, with the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) setting an ambitious goal to automate all of Japan’s 55,000+ convenience stores by 2025 1.

This automation push is directly tied to Japan’s severe demographic challenges, as the population is projected to shrink dramatically from 125 million in 2000 to just 88 million by 2065, creating critical labor shortages 1.

Despite these challenges, Japan’s convenience store market remains robust, generating ¥11.8 trillion ($78.7 billion) in annual sales as of 2024, highlighting why companies are investing heavily in technology to maintain operational efficiency 2.

The experimental Lawson store’s robots for cooking and floor cleaning directly address these labor concerns while testing which technologies can realistically scale across their network of 14,700 stores nationwide.