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Ryokan produces goods of its cute mascot proprietress, goes deep into deficit

Koh Ruide Jun 11, 2017
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Never question an otaku’s dedication to his waifu.

Moe characters are used in all sorts of promotions in Japan. However one ryokan (a traditional Japanese inn), has recently taken character worshiping to another level.

Nestled in the mountains of hot springs-rich Oita Prefecture, Tsuruyaintaku is a five-room, family-owned ryokan that just happens to be managed by an otaku. The ryokan suffered numerous cancellations during the 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes, but in part due to the inn’s constant tweets about anime and games on Twitter, it enjoyed a great deal of patronage from fans of both genres.

Now, as a way of giving back to the community, the proprietor has come up with a mascot character for the ryokan that his fellow otaku guests will enjoy: Chizuru.

▼ An embarrassed Chizuru promoting her ryokan

千鶴応援宿泊プラン⇒https://t.co/z2OlMiqBRG
千鶴オリジナルA4クリアファイル通販⇒https://t.co/Pn3D09OaiY pic.twitter.com/Y2z3mwI01n

— 電脳女将・千鶴【湯平温泉旅館つるや隠宅公式】 (@Tsuruya_Chizuru) June 7, 2017

Illustrator Alpha, who is also from Oita Prefecture, designed this green-eyed beauty of a ryokan proprietress. Her kimono is a sight to behold — adorned with the kanji “tsuru” which means “crane” in Japanese, and is also in the ryokan’s name Tsuruyaintaku.

Chizuru’s hobbies include taking strolls and photography, but her main duty is to provide information on her ryokan and local sightseeing spots through Twitter. Because you know, that’s what an “e-proprietress” does right?

▼ A chibi Chizuru letting patrons know that
it’s raining today and it’s the start of the rainy season.

こんにちは☔️
梅雨入り＞＜ pic.twitter.com/1N3ttgoFpo

— 電脳女将・千鶴【湯平温泉旅館つるや隠宅公式】 (@Tsuruya_Chizuru) June 7, 2017

▼ Chizuru is surprised she made it into the news.

オタク旅館が考えた最強の萌えキャラ「千鶴」　考案者が惚れてしまい赤字覚悟でグッズ化 https://t.co/sEoqMIXOZZ #niconews pic.twitter.com/vcJV6VRyaB

— 電脳女将・千鶴【湯平温泉旅館つるや隠宅公式】 (@Tsuruya_Chizuru) June 6, 2017

▼ Don’t ignore her advice!
This girl’s not to be trifled with.

※すもつくれん⁼大分弁で「つまらない」 pic.twitter.com/Dpb695fhm1

— 電脳女将・千鶴【湯平温泉旅館つるや隠宅公式】 (@Tsuruya_Chizuru) June 4, 2017

In an odd twist though, the ryokan’s actual proprietor soon began to fall in love with Chizuru himself, so much so that he started producing Chizuru goods, even if it meant spending so much money that his ryokan profits would sink into the red.

The proprietor had clear plastic files made featuring the ryokan’s front entrance and Chizuru in a beautiful pink kimono. While each file was sold for 680 yen (US$6), manufacturing costs actually ended up surpassing profits.

▼ I mean, it’s a nice folder,
but is it really worth going into debt for?

有葉先生描き下ろし！当館公式キャラ・千鶴のオリジナルA4クリアファイル通販開始しました！商品説明の通り売上は全額、千鶴の新企画の為だけに使用させていただきます！価格は680円（送料別）です！よろしくお願いします！https://t.co/WkgZHwYy0I #booth_pm pic.twitter.com/ySa7kLlHR0

— 旅館つるや隠宅♨️🐾 (@turuyaintaku) June 2, 2017

Any sane person would at least raise retail prices to break even, but we suppose the proprietor would rather keep prices down at his own expense for the sake of Chizuru’s fans. The man takes it in stride, resolutely believing that all proceeds go to his hardworking waifu. We can’t argue with that can we?

▼ The file comes with a heartfelt thank you message from Chizuru,
as well as a five-percent accommodation discount voucher!

https://twitter.com/3lq0Bv8qfz6vBO4/status/872721858256293890

At present, the proprietor hopes to have Chizuru voiced and eventually VR-implemented, so ryokan customers (and presumably himself) can have the cute girl at their beck and call.

Until then, maybe he can take some inspiration from another ryokan and have some Chizuru backdrops for guests to take pictures with?

Source: Tsuruyaintaku via Biglobe and Twitter/@turuyaintaku
Featured image: Twitter/Danbooru