Date: August 30, 2024
Location: Saitama

　　KEEN, an outdoor footwear brand, has been a long-time supporter of Mirai no Mori in various forms, such as financial and shoe donations and program partners. And once again, they gave us a one-day internship opportunity for 2 LITs in one of their stores in a shopping complex in Saitama. In the morning, they started with cleaning and stock checks, just as a store employee would. Once the store was open, they worked on various tasks such as organizing stock and supporting staff, but they also had opportunities to serve the customers themselves. KEEN has also made special business cards for LITs so that they can experience exchanging business cards with staff from neighboring stores. It was a rare opportunity to see and learn about many aspects of working life that they had not experienced before. At the end of their shift, they had a reflection with the store manager and even received a pair of shoes. Thank you very much to everyone at KEEN who made this program possible for such a special learning opportunity.

“I had researched about their product and even double-checked when I got to the store, but I couldn’t muster up the courage to go and talk to customers. I was a little disappointed in myself, but I’m glad that I was able to serve some customers with support from the store staff. If there’s another chance, I would like to try again!”

“It was the first time for me to actually exchange business cards with anybody. I wasn’t sure what to say at the beginning, but after a few tries, I got better and was able to talk to them smoothly!”