For Japan's convenience stores, no foreign staff means no sale

Dearth of Japanese applicants has service industries looking abroad for help

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Wang Qian, from China, right, who manages a Lawson outlet in Tokyo's Minato Ward, teaches a new employee how to operate a cash register.

HIROTAKA TAMAOKA, Nikkei staff writer

TOKYO -- Restaurants and retailers in Japan can no longer survive without help from abroad. Some severely understaffed convenience stores, among others, have more foreign staff than Japanese.

"Grilled chicken is 10 yen (9 cents) off," chirped an employee at a Lawson convenience store in central Tokyo on a weekday afternoon in late March.

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