Why is this work relevant for PR?

Our challenge was to eradicate the anxieties towards an aging society, and shift dynamically from an unaccepting society to a positive and accepting society. To accomplish this, the first step was by putting up just one sign in front of the restaurant.

Background

There are more than 35 million dementia patients in the world today. The WHO predicts that by 2050, the number will rise to more than 115 million. With the fastest aging population in the world and more than a quarter of its population above age 65, Japan will most likely be at the forefront of this new epoch. What can we do to challenge conventional preconception that says “Dementia = Completely Incapable of anything”?

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

We decided to launch a restaurant-type event where people with dementia served as hall staff, assuming they would be making a mistake when taking and serving orders. At the entrance, a sign that read “Restaurant of Mistaken Orders” was displayed. By doing so, the mistake made by the staff went from “something unacceptable” to “something that can be forgiven” changing the mindset of the customers. It was targeted to the general public,with an aim to be something charming and entertaining so that younger generations that might think they have nothing to do with dementia will think, “What kind of a restaurant is this?! I want to experience this.” The reason behind this is because it is a dark social issue, all the more, people need to enjoy with a positive mindset for a paradigm shift to actually occur.

Describe the strategy (30% of vote)

Since dementia is a sensitive issue, there was a necessity to prove that it is “An event that is fun, and makes people feel at ease and smile from the bottom of their hearts regardless of having dementia or not.” It started as a small trial event; a survey was conducted afterwards, and it was proven through numeric evidence that people with dementia worked vivaciously out of their free will, as well customers truly enjoying the experience. To discover that a fun space could be created even if a mistake occurred (or rather enjoyed more when a mistake occurred,) as a result, led to the participation of many corporations and local government organizations. At the grand opening of this world’s first restaurant, it was inundated with international media wanting to cover the event, and this news was shared widely on SNS not only in Japan but also spread worldwide.

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

The first event was held between September 16th to 18th in 2017 at "Randy" a cafe in Roppongi. 264 customers, 18 staff with dementia. Inspired by this first event, 20 restaurant events were held in Japan in about a year. It then spread to the rest of the world such as China, Korea, and Canada; currently a TV series created by Channel 4 in the UK is underway. In March of 2019, “The Restaurant of Mistaken Orders at the Ministry of Labor” was held. This became the first ever case in Japan to officially hire under contract people with dementia living in nursing homes, making history by having the current Labor Minister visit the restaurant.

List the results (30% of vote) – must include at least two of the following tiers:

・Awareness towards dementia increased by 82% ・Total reach number(TV exposure only)：28,376,052 people＝one in every five Japanese ・Number of articles：218,000 ・Japan Potential imp: 99,000,000 imp ・Global Potential Imp: 140,000,000 imp ・AD/PR cost $0→$1.3M（PR value） ・Press coverage：34 international including Reuters and New York Times+46 Japanese media ・In the accumulated total of the three official event services, the rate of making mistakes surpassed 37%, but 99% of the customers did not feel stress. Moreover, some customers even said that they were “disappointed that a mistake didn’t occur.”

Please tell us about the social behaviour and/or cultural insights that inspired your campaign

The affinity spread in Japan and worldwide and ultimately in March 2019, “The Restaurant of Mistaken Orders at the Ministry of Labor” was held. This became the first ever case in Japan to officially hire under contract people with dementia living in nursing homes, making history by having the current Labor Minister visit the restaurant.