Heroes of Lawson Staff: Park Koeun
- Please introduce yourself briefly.
My name is Park Koeun, I’m from South Korea. I’m 22 years old, turning 23 very soon.
I currently live in Tokyo and I came to Japan with a working holiday visa in August 2018.
Almost 1 year has passed since then and I can’t believe I’m going home in a few weeks. Time surely flew by.
- What made you want to move to Japan?
I mainly had two motives when deciding on coming to Japan: taking a break from university and challenging myself by living in a foreign country. When I was younger, I used to like Japanese idols a lot and studied Japanese language for 2 years; I was somewhat familiar with Japanese culture, too. Also, Japan is very close to Korea, so it seemed like a good choice.
- Do you have any plans for the future? Do you have a dream? What kind of image do you have of your future self?
I was studying acting at university originally. When I return home to Korea, I would like to have a job related to musicals, and in the future, I would like to perform in musicals if possible.
- Why did you choose to work at Lawson and how did you find us?
I read about Lawson Staff first on a Korean blog that contained all kinds of details in connection with Lawson. What caught my attention about Lawson Staff was the possibility to manage your working hours however you want.
- What do you think about Japanese work culture? How is it different from your home country’s?
Part-time jobs in Korea are a challenge to manage timewise. Most places offer a set time frame you can work in, probably at the same hours every day, so it’s hard to find something that fits in to your schedule perfectly, especially for a student like me. But in Japan, especially at Lawson Staff, as I have already mentioned earlier, you get to decide when and how you want to work. I also find it incredibly helpful that employees’ transportation fees are reimbursed by most companies in this country.
- What is your relationship like with your colleagues and bosses? How did they welcome you?
Unfortunately, I work in different Lawson stores all the time, so I couldn’t really make friends with any of my colleagues that much. However, whenever I go to a new store, all employees and store owners have been kind to me so far, teaching me everything about the job with great patience.
- If there is a story or a memory you are fond of about any of the Lawson stores you have worked for so far, please share it with us.
There is one particular store that I went to work at quite a few times. The manager always paid a lot of attention to me and made me feel welcomed. One day he got relocated to a different store, and I couldn’t even say “Thank you” or “Goodbye” to him. I’m a bit sad about that, but I will always remember how kind he was to me.
- Would you recommend Lawson as a workplace to other international people, too?
Yes, I would!
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