The Japanese lifestyle destination marked its third anniversary with a Tanabata festival that also honored 70 years of diplomatic relations between Japan and the Philippines, celebrating a friendship rooted in shared values, everyday rituals, and the spirit of omotenashi.
Beneath the sweeping “Joining Hands” installation suspended above MITSUKOSHI BGC’s atrium, bamboo branches swayed with colorful tanzaku wishing cards. It was an unmistakable sign that Tanabata Matsuri, Japan’s beloved Star Festival, had arrived.
The timing couldn’t have been more fitting. July is both Tanabata season and the month of Philippines-Japan Friendship Day, with this year marking 70 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The festivities began in suitably energetic fashion with thunderous taiko drumming, followed by a lively mikoshi procession that brought one of Japan’s most recognizable festival traditions to Bonifacio Global City. Rousing performances by LIV Dance Academy, the first Japanese-owned dance studio in BGC, added a cheerful and contemporary flourish, while the unveiling of Mitsuko — the mall’s beloved kokeshi mascot — dressed in the colors of the Philippine and Japanese flags, reinforced the evening’s central theme: two cultures, one enduring friendship.
Built on shared values
The celebration may have revolved around Tanabata, but the evening’s message ran deeper than festival traditions. For Federal Land Chairman Alfred V. Ty, the story of MITSUKOSHI BGC has always been deeply personal. “This year’s celebration is especially meaningful as it coincides with the 70th Anniversary of Japan-Philippines Friendship,” he said. “For seven decades, our two nations have nurtured a relationship built on mutual respect, trust, shared values, and a common desire to create a better future together.”
Having traveled to Japan more than a hundred times and lived there for several years, Ty said his admiration extended beyond innovation and craftsmanship to something far more familiar. “I came to admire not only Japan’s innovation and discipline, but also the warmth of its people and the values that remind me so much of our own. Filipinos and Japanese both cherish family, honor tradition, respect hard work, and believe that excellence is found in the smallest details,” he noted.
Those shared ideals became the blueprint for the partnership between Federal Land, Nomura Real Estate Development, and Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings. “We did not simply aspire to build another residential development or another shopping destination,” Ty said. “We wanted to create a place where the very best of Japan and the Philippines could come together naturally, where culture could be experienced, friendships could grow, and families could feel at home.”
That affinity has become increasingly visible beyond MITSUKOSHI BGC’s walls. Ty noted that the Philippines now ranks second among Asian countries in terms of visitors to Japan, underscoring just how deeply Japanese culture has resonated with Filipino travelers. In many ways, MITSUKOSHI BGC simply brings a small piece of that experience closer to home.
He also pointed to another cornerstone of the development’s philosophy: omotenashi, the Japanese tradition of wholehearted hospitality. “It is all encapsulated in a single word: Omotenashi. The custom of treating every customer as if they are to enter in your own home.”
That philosophy, he added, continues to guide the group’s commitment to “creating spaces that enrich everyday living through thoughtful design… and the timeless values that both our countries hold dear.”
A feel of the familiar
Those sentiments resonated strongly with Yokota Naobumi, Minister for Economic Affairs at the Embassy of Japan, who described MITSUKOSHI BGC as something far more meaningful than a department store. Since opening in 2023, he pointed out, the mall has become “one of the most vibrant hubs of Japanese culture in Metro Manila,” introducing Japanese food, fashion, and lifestyle to an ever-growing number of Filipino visitors.
His remarks became even more heartfelt when he shared that, as a resident of BGC, he visits MITSUKOSHI almost every week. “As someone living away from my family in Japan, I particularly appreciate having a place where I can buy familiar Japanese ingredients and enjoy authentic Japanese food.”
It is precisely this comforting sense of home that draws many Japanese residents to MITSUKOSHI BGC. At the same time, the mall has become an inviting gateway for Filipinos eager to experience Japanese culture through food, festivals, and everyday encounters, nurturing the kind of people-to-people connections that have long strengthened relations between the two countries. “In many ways, this evening is a celebration not only of MITSUKOSHI’s success, but also of the enduring friendship between Japan and the Philippines,” Noabumi said.
Always evolving
This year’s celebration also marked a milestone for MITSUKOSHI BGC’s new General Manager, Masahiko Yoshizawa, who celebrated his first anniversary with the mall while looking ahead to its next chapter.
“Three years may be a relatively young age for a mall, but it is also the perfect time to reflect on how far we’ve come—and more importantly, where we’re headed,” he said.
Yoshizawa noted that MITSUKOSHI BGC has continued refining its tenant mix, strengthening partnerships, and elevating the customer experience, with plans to introduce even more authentic Japanese experiences and collaborations in the years ahead. “Building a destination isn’t something that ends when the doors open,” he said. “It continues every day—with every idea, every improvement, and every customer experience.”
Moving forward, Yoshizawa reflected that the team hopes to further distinguish MITSUKOSHI BGC as Metro Manila’s closest everyday window into Japanese culture. “As we celebrate our third anniversary, we are not simply looking back on three successful years,” he said. “We are looking ahead—to new opportunities, new partnerships, and new experiences that will continue to strengthen the bond between Japan and the Philippines.”
The celebration continues
The Tanabata festivities continue through August with experiences that invite guests to immerse themselves in Japanese culture long after the anniversary celebration ends.
Highlights include the return of the Maguro Cutting Show featuring third-generation Japanese fish dealer and international seafood exporter Kosuke Nakaoka, who demonstrates the precision and craftsmanship behind Japan’s celebrated tuna-cutting tradition. Visitors can also write wishes on colorful tanzaku cards to hang on bamboo trees throughout the mall, slip into traditional yukata during special dressing sessions, participate in pottery and paper theater workshops, explore pop-ups showcasing Japanese and Filipino craftsmanship, and join Japanese-inspired games and raffle promotions.
More than a seasonal lineup of activities, the programming reflects MITSUKOSHI BGC’s continuing mission to make Japanese culture accessible, engaging, and woven into everyday life.
Where friendship finds a home
As MITSUKOSHI BGC enters its fourth year, it continues to evolve into something that’s increasingly difficult to define as simply a mall. It’s where a Japanese diplomat finds familiar comforts from home, where Filipino families discover new traditions one festival at a time, and where children can dance beneath a canopy of wishes without realizing they’re becoming part of a much bigger story.
Perhaps no one captured that transformation more simply than Chairman Ty. “Our mall is not big. It doesn’t take a whole day to experience everything. But whenever I walk through it, I see families enjoying meals together, parents introducing their children to Japanese culture, friends spending weekends here, and homeowners making this community part of their everyday lives.”
In many ways, that’s the success of MITSUKOSHI BGC. Not simply bringing a piece of Japan to Manila, but creating a place where two cultures continue to meet naturally, where traditions are shared across generations, and where the friendship between Japan and the Philippines is celebrated not only during milestone anniversaries, but in wonderfully ordinary moments.
#MitsukoshiBGC
#TanabataMatsuri
#JapanPhilippinesFriendship
#ExpatPhilippines
#ExpatPH
#BilateralRelations
#CrossCultural
#BGC
Federal Land, Inc.
The Seasons Residences
Embassy of Japan in the Philippines
