Hiramatsu Corporation will be participating as a sponsor in the "PREMIUM JAPAN AWARD 2026," organized by the Japan Culture Creation Organization (JCCO). We spoke with President and CEO Kazuyasu Misu.

Our new purpose: "Bringing beautiful flavors to the future."

Q: First, could you tell us why you decided to become a sponsor?

A. Last year, we formulated our medium-term management plan for 2030, and in creating that plan, we first decided to define the company's purpose.

Until now, Hiramatsu had a corporate philosophy, but it had not formulated a corporate purpose. After much discussion, the final output was "Beautiful taste, for the future."

"Beautiful Flavors for the Future" is not simply about creating delicious food. It's about preserving Japanese food culture itself. Chefs and service staff play a part in this, and in Hiramatsu's case, there are approximately 400 of each. Our corporate purpose is to connect the Japanese food culture that these chefs and service staff create to the future.

As Japan's population declines, the number of people working in the food and beverage industry will inevitably decrease as well. In addition, the food and beverage industry faces challenges that need to be addressed, such as working hours and compensation. Hiramatsu believes that its role is to increase the number of people working in the food and beverage industry by establishing a foundation for human resource development and performance evaluation as a company.

Japanese food culture holds a very important place within Japanese culture. Premium Japan is a media outlet that disseminates Japanese culture. It actively shares information with the world, and that influence flows back to Japan. The philosophy of this award, which is to connect Japanese aesthetics, technology, and cultural values ​​to the next generation and the world, and to contribute to the further development of Japanese culture, aligns with the direction that Hiramatsu aims to go in, and that is why we decided to sponsor it.

Preserving Japanese culture and aesthetics for the future through food

Q: Now, let's talk about your company. Hiramatsu started with restaurants and has expanded its business to weddings and hotels. How do you perceive Hiramatsu as a company?

A: While our company is known for operating high-end restaurants and luxury hotels, we see ourselves as a company that provides culture, beauty, and experiential value.

The purpose behind our motto, "Bringing beautiful flavors to the future," is not simply about being a restaurant business, but about being a company that connects Japanese culture and aesthetics to the future through food.

Hiramatsu hotels are designed in an auberge style, and we see them as an extension of our restaurants. If there are wonderful ingredients and wonderful producers all over Japan, it's only natural that we want to offer dishes that reflect their charm and passion.

However, if you want to open a restaurant in a location close to such production areas, you need accommodation facilities. That's where the idea of ​​an "auberge where you can stay and dine" comes in. Hiramatsu has always valued coexistence with local communities and collaboration with producers, so it was a natural progression to create a hotel in such a location when the opportunity arose.

"HRMT STAGE" opened for the first time in 18 years.

Q: Regarding the consumption behavior of the wealthy, have you noticed any changes over the past decade or so?

A: Rather than a change in the wealthy class itself, I feel there's a generational shift within the wealthy class. Those who were in their 50s are now in their 60s. And even within the wealthy class, there are differences depending on the age group.

Older, wealthy people tend to prefer authentic French cuisine, while younger, wealthy people prefer lighter, more modern French dishes. This trend is even seen in France itself. French cuisine incorporating Japanese and other Asian flavors is gaining international attention and acclaim. It's likely that young, wealthy people in Japan are also highly interested in these global culinary trends.

Of course, there are older people who are interested in new dishes, and younger people who occasionally want to eat authentic cuisine, so it's not a complete dichotomy.

Q: What kind of restaurant is "HRMT STAGE," which recently opened in Ebisu?

A "HRMT STAGE," which opened in Ebisu in February 2026, was a challenge created by considering what Hiramatsu's cuisine should be like and what a Hiramatsu restaurant should be like.

Actually, we are planning to open a new store in Aoyama in 2028. "HRMT STAGE" is a preliminary step. We position "HRMT STAGE" as a place to create new dishes and services for Hiramatsu.

Q: What are the features of the new store?

With the aim of exploring new ways of preparing and serving food, we first lowered the prices.

While the interior is high-quality and sophisticated, our prices are definitely on the casual side. Although set courses are the norm in most restaurants, we believe many customers prefer a more flexible approach, wanting to try a variety of dishes. Therefore, in addition to set courses, we offer à la carte options. This is a key feature of our restaurant.

In addition, we've changed our serving style. Now, the chefs start cooking in the main kitchen at the back of the restaurant, then come out to the counter connected to it to do the final touches right in front of the customers. Alternatively, we've adopted a style where the chefs serve while engaging in conversation with the customers. This is a new approach for Hiramatsu.

The four meanings behind HRMT

Q: Is HRMT one of your brand offerings?

While the letters A HRMT might be associated with "Hiramatsu," it also embodies a unique concept specific to this restaurant.

The menu for "HRMT STAGE" is created under the culinary supervision of four chefs representing French, Italian, Japanese, and innovative cuisine, who are active in Hiramatsu restaurants and hotels throughout Japan.

The H in HRMT stands for Harmony, which brings together the cuisine and staff. The R stands for Restructuring, which involves shedding the old Hiramatsu and rebuilding it. The M stands for Moment, which is Hiramatsu's original philosophy of providing customers with the best possible experience. And the final T stands for Tradition, which means cherishing the traditions that Hiramatsu has built. That's what HRMT is all about.

We added "STAGE" to HRMT because, when considering HRMT's future development, we wanted this store to be a stepping stone for young chefs and service staff. The idea is that they will work here for about three years before spreading their wings and taking off.

A value unique to Hiramatsu in the restaurant industry

Q: What is the unique value that only Hiramatsu has?

A. I believe one of the most valuable aspects of Hiramatsu today is our connection with four French chefs.

Gilles Renard of "Restaurant Paul Bocuse," Marc Haeberlin of "Auberge de l'Ill," the brothers Jacques and Laurent Pourcel of "Jardin des Sens," and Philippe Mill of "Arbane." All are legendary French chefs.

For example, many Japanese chefs who are active in Japan have a history of going to France, struggling to get into famous French restaurants, and training there. While some have made a name for themselves after starting from washing dishes and enduring hardship, there must also be many who never saw the light of day.

If a chef or service staff member at Hiramatsu wants to train in France, they have the opportunity to do so by going to one of the restaurants there for an internship. Being able to learn the culinary philosophy and techniques of the French flagship restaurant directly from the source, while still working at Hiramatsu, is a significant advantage.

Of course, it's not just these restaurants in France; you can also interact with Hiramatsu's French and Italian chefs within Japan.

I believe this is an environment where you can learn and experience a wide range of things. Also, since they allow career changes such as, "I wanted to be a chef, but I've decided I want to work in the service industry," it is possible to build a broad career.

Furthermore, restaurant chefs can move between the hotel restaurant and the hotel restaurant, and service staff can also move between the restaurant and the hotel. Therefore, when it comes to personnel and organization, we oversee both the restaurant and the hotel seamlessly.

Seeking flexibility in personnel management

Q: Could you also tell me about your company's approach to human resource development?

Human resource development is one of the pillars of our medium-term management plan for 2030.

Most general personnel systems are designed with the assumption that employees will be promoted from section chief, department head, general manager, executive, and ultimately to president. However, our company has adopted a completely different personnel system.

For example, not all chefs aim to become executives. Nor do they necessarily want to become the head chef of a hotel. I think the majority simply want to continue cooking. Within that group, some enjoy teaching others, others enjoy creating new dishes and developing menus, and still others enjoy preserving traditional dishes and excellent recipes. It varies from person to person. Human resources carefully looks into what each person likes and what they want to do.

Regarding service staff, there are all sorts of people: some simply love service itself, others aspire to become sommeliers, and some want to take on management and leadership roles in a restaurant. Or, as mentioned earlier, some might want to switch careers from chef to service staff or sommelier. In short, people's aspirations are incredibly diverse.

At Hiramatsu, we aim to provide flexibility in our personnel management. We call this a "multi-track career path," where employees can choose their own career paths. By creating multiple career paths instead of a single track, we also establish clear evaluation criteria to increase individual compensation.

This will inevitably change the training programs both inside and outside the company. We are currently reviewing our training systems to determine what kind of educational programs are necessary to help employees achieve their respective career goals.

There are active discussions going on right now, and we're getting feedback from the staff on the ground. This is also boosting everyone's motivation.

I believe that employee motivation is extremely important for both restaurants and hotels. To put it simply, it means always being cheerful and positive. High employee motivation is directly linked to high ratings for restaurants and hotels. That's why human resource development strategies are extremely important to Hiramatsu.

For Hiramatsu, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was immense. After it subsided, around 2025, we were finally able to invest in new businesses and human resources.

As a company, this is the time when we are moving in the most innovative direction, and the energy from discussions is focused on that, which makes it very rewarding.

The first M&A deal is "Talos" in Shibuya.

Q: What are the current challenges facing your company?

A. Branding. As I mentioned earlier, HRMT, our existing domestic original brand, and the overseas brand created by the four French chefs—clarifying the role and value of each and determining how the brand as a whole will develop going forward is crucial, and we consider it our challenge.

In this context, opening a new store in Tokyo for the first time in 18 years, and branding it under the new brand "HRMT," was a major decision. It allowed us to clearly define our unique brand identity, and I believe it represents a significant step forward in our brand strategy.

Separately, we established a subsidiary called HRMI. It stands for "Hotel & Restaurant Management Investment," and it serves as a platform for our M&A activities.

HRMI was established in March 2026, and its first M&A deal is "Talos," a Sardinian restaurant in Shibuya. It's close to Shibuya Station and is a casual restaurant for everyday use, so it's completely different from Hiramatsu's traditional restaurants and hotels.

The reason we acquired this company is that, in order to expand Hiramatsu's business, we felt it was necessary to attract younger generations of customers not only through high-priced offerings, but also through casual business models.

While there are several Sicilian restaurants in Tokyo, you don't hear of many Sardinian restaurants. Before Italy was unified, Sardinia was a very powerful kingdom and a region that developed its own unique culture. And above all, it's an island with delicious food and wine.

The Japanese owner of "Talos" has been running the restaurant for 18 years with the desire to spread Sardinian cuisine further. This merger is intended to help Hiramatsu achieve that goal. That being said, "Talos" already serves wonderful food, so Hiramatsu will not be offering any opinions on the cuisine.

With this newly established HRMI, we plan to continuously expand our business areas.

A forecast of the future 10 years from now

Q: Finally, what kind of company do you want Hiramatsu to be in 10 years?

A: Hiramatsu will always remain a company centered around restaurants; that will never change. I casually mentioned "Japanese food culture" at the beginning, but I don't think it only applies to Japanese cuisine. Rather, current Japanese food culture encompasses not only Japanese cuisine, but also French and Italian cuisine. Hiramatsu's French and Italian dishes also sometimes incorporate Japanese elements.

The responsibility for preserving food culture extends not only to chefs but also to service staff. We want to create a foundation for nurturing more talented individuals who can carry on this food culture.

Furthermore, in our vision for the future, we envision establishing farms and training facilities. It would be great to have a lab there to develop new dishes.

Of course, training facilities and labs don't generate profit on their own, so they're not the top priority, but they are things we'd like to make a reality someday.

Kazuyasu Misu

Born in 1957 in Izu City, Shizuoka Prefecture. He served as captain of the Hitotsubashi University hockey team. After joining Mitsubishi Corporation, he held key positions in the lifestyle and food sectors. After serving as an outside director for companies such as Nippon Ham Co., Ltd., Coca-Cola Central Japan Co., Ltd., and Mitsubishi Foods Corporation, he became President and Representative Director of Kanro Co., Ltd. in 2016. From June 2023, he became a director of Hiramatsu, and in June 2024, he became President and Representative Director of Hiramatsu. He is also a representative director of the Japan Hockey Association.