Moving Forward Together with Local Communities
We expand and improve the functions of our stores, so they can be trusted infrastructure for local residents. As a company that shares local community desires that cars be used properly, we also contribute to safety and security in the daily lives of local residents.
Contributing to Local Communities
To be Infrastructure in Support of Local Residents
Installing EV Charging Stands
Electric vehicles (EVs), which do not emit CO2, are expected to play a significant role in fighting global warming. The AUTOBACS chain, therefore, is moving forward with the installation of EV charging stands in its store parking lots as a convenience for customers who visit our stores in an EV or plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHV), and to promote the use of these vehicles. As of June 30, 2016, charging stands had been installed at 104 AUTOBACS stores.
Pursuing Activities Rooted in Local Areas
In 2005, we began conducting cleanup activities in the area surrounding our headquarters, and, in the fiscal year ended March 2010, we instituted AUTOBACS Day — one day each week when the employees of each store clean the area around the store before opening time. On another front, we use our ARTA Project, for promoting motor sports, as the context for the “Yume wo Kanaeru” (Make Your Dreams Come True) extracurricular programs we hold for elementary and junior high school students. These are only a couple examples of locally based, locally oriented activities we are pursuing to be good citizens of the communities where we are located.
Conducting Company Tours – The Eastern Japan Logistics Center
At the Eastern Japan logistics Center, we have been conducting company tours for local junior high schools annually since January 2007. One-hundred-thirty students have visited the center over that time. Going forward, we are eager to provide more students with a chance to see firsthand what the logistics center does and gain a sense of the challenges, pleasures, and meaning of work.
Support for Victims of the 2016 Earthquakes in Kumamoto
Following the earthquake that struck Kumamoto on April 14, 2016, we received a request for assistance from municipal authorities and the very next day delivered water, emergency food, and emergency toilets to the municipal government office in Mashiki, a town in Kumamoto Prefecture. Following up on that effort, AUTOBACS stores throughout Japan collected financial donations from customers between April 19 and May 31, and sent a total of about ¥2.8 million to disaster victims, via the Japanese Red Cross Society. In addition, the Company agreed to match employee donations exceeding a certain amount, ultimately raising another ¥1.0 million, which was presented to the Association for Aid and Relief, Japan, a nonprofit organization committed to assisting refugees. Aside from financial assistance, we have also lent items to organizations engaged in frontline relief work and have donated five minitrucks to the Japan Car Sharing Association for shared use in disaster-hit areas.
Assisting People Stranded in a Disaster
The AUTOBACS chain, at stores where it is practical to do so, has entered into agreements with local governments to assist people who become stranded in a disaster. Under these agreements, stores will provide people taking shelter at their locations with access to water and toilet facilities, and will use maps, radios, and other means to provide information on road conditions. As of March 31, 2016, 345 stores in 22 prefectures were ready to provide the assistance mentioned above.
Strengthening Disaster Response Capabilities
Tire service trucks that can be used as mobile sales platforms and to provide disaster response services have been deployed to seven business sites across Japan. In times of disaster, these vehicles can be used to stand in for an incapacitated store and provide important services that customers would otherwise not be able to receive.
Contributing to Car Culture
Developing a New Generation of Car Enthusiasts
KidZania Pavilions and Support for College Students Learning to Make Cars
The Company has developed the Car Life Support Center pavilions at the KidZania Tokyo and KidZania Koshien occupational theme parks for children. In 2014, both underwent renovations to deliver an even better experience. The purpose of these pavilions is to have children learn the enjoyment that can come from cars, encourage understanding of how cars work and of car safety, and contribute to the development of a safe motorized society going forward.
For college students, we provide support for two teams in the Student Formula Japan car-building competition held by the Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan. Through such support, we are encouraging young people to conceive, design, and make cars from the ground up.
Support for Motor Sports
To help invigorate motor sports as a whole, the Company co-sponsors the SUPER GT series, Japan’s most popular car races. In addition, since the establishment of the ARTA Project (AUTOBACS RACINGTEAM AGURI) in 1998, we have been pursuing activities on multiple fronts, such as discovering and developing Japanese drivers into world-class competitors and participating in domestic and overseas races, to use the passion of racing to create new fans.
Other Contributions
Support for Children’s Environmental Education and People in Need of Food Assistance
Co-Sponsorship of the Green Power Festival
The Company cosponsored the 3rd Green Power Festival, organized by the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry’s Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, to provide parents and children with a fun opportunity to learn about renewable energy and the environment. In the main event, parent-and-child teams, who were the winners of seven regional energy quiz tournaments held across Japan, competed ferociously to come out on top at the championship tournament held in January 2016. The Company supports the use of renewable energy and will continue to do so going forward.
Donation of Emergency Food Supplies
The Company donates emergency food supplies nearing their “use-by” dates to Second Harvest, an NPO operating a food bank. The food we donate is distributed to people who are in need of food assistance and to organizations such as children’s homes. We also participate in the Kyukancho Project, which collects canned bread before it reaches its “use-by” date and distributes it internationally to people suffering from hunger and malnutrition.
