Sales Network
The Yomiuri Shimbun is supported by a door-to-door delivery network made up of about 6,600 sales outlets nationwide. Here we introduce the jobs of staff members and examples of interactions with local community members that have helped with their daily living.
Newspaper Sales Outlets
The Job of YCs
Yomiuri Shimbun sales outlets deliver newspapers and play the role of "last runners" in delivering the news as a business partner of The Yomiuri Shimbun. Including outlets that also handle other newspapers, we have about 6,600 sales outlets nationwide that are staffed by about 50,000 people. Of these, the outlets that exclusively distribute The Yomiuri Shimbun number about 3,100 and are called Yomiuri Centers, or YCs. Some of the YCs have daycare facilities onsite or partner with outside daycare centers to provide an environment for women easy to work in. About 40% of all our staff are women.
Today, when the internet is so prevalent, newspapers are highly trusted, and these sales outlets help support that trust.
Sales Outlets in the Community
YCs aim to fulfill their social responsibility as a business operator of delivering a public instrument, the newspaper, on a daily basis. YC staff members, who know their communities inside and out, not only deliver newspapers, but also offer "YC Delivery" service that delivers small packages and makes deliveries of McDonald's products through McDelivery, and in this way they look after the safety of the community. In addition, some outlets provide unique services such as "Ecosharing" of collecting newspapers after they've been read and sales of local products.
For YCs to become an even more essential part of their local communities by carrying out a variety of social contribution activities for the sake of residents, we started the "Yomiuri Center in Your Town" campaign in 2023 and called on each center to engage in one activity. Each YC has been carrying out activities closely aligned with their communities. The campaign honors YCs engaged in activities that serve as models for the others.
New Initiative That Leverage Our Distribution Capabilities
YCs have delivery staff who know their communities very well. We have drawn on this delivery capability to enter the package and food delivery businesses and have received praise for our quick delivery and courteous customer service. We are connected not only with newspaper readers but with everyone in the community through deliveries of various goods and services. We want to contribute to the community as a presence deeply rooted there.
YC Delivery Service
Under this service, YC staff deliver items ordered online retail and other means. We started the service in June 2019 in limited areas in Tokyo and expanded it to all across Tokyo (excluding island areas) in August 2021 and to Chiba, Kanagawa and Saitama Prefectures in 2022. In Tokyo and the three prefectures, we have about 800 YCs, which deliver an average of 10,000 packages per day for seven consigners (as of September 2023).
McDelivery
YC staff deliver McDonald's products through the McDelivery service offered by McDonald's Japan nationwide. The service was launched nationwide on a full-fledged basis in May 2021, and YC staff now deliver over 1,000 items of McDonald's products each day for around 250 McDonald's restaurants in Tokyo and 25 other prefectures (as of September 2023).
Jobs of Newspaper Sales Outlets
YCs engage in their daily work with responsibility and pride at being a member of the Yomiuri Shimbun Group. YC staff do their deliveries and other work with the mission of satisfying each and every customer. Through this daily work, they act as protectors of the community by keeping an eye on what is going on. YCs will continue to contribute to community development.
Basic Jobs of YCs
Protecting Japan's Beauty through Restoration
When newspapers loaded on a truck arrive at the sales outlets, they are checked for type and volume. Leaflets are added to the newspapers and the papers are sorted by delivery area. On rainy days, the newspapers are covered in plastic bags using a special machine.
The newspapers are loaded onto bicycles and motorcycles and delivered at a predetermined time each morning to readers within their area of responsibility.
Collection
Staff visit readers and collect payments for the newspapers. They may also provide a bonus booklet for subscribing.
Sales
Staff go house by house to make recommendations on reading the newspaper.
Area management
Though the job of delivery, collection and sales, customer management is conducted for their area of responsibility.
Information on Yomiuri Shimbun Full-Time and Part-Time Jobs.
Inquire with your local YC if you are interested in working at a sales outlet.
Local Activities of Newspaper Sales Outlets
YC staff interact in a variety of ways with local community members through their daily delivery and collection activities. Drawing on these connections and experiences with people, YCs plan sports and cultural events that are fun for the general public and also carry out local contribution activities with an emphasis on health, welfare, and environmental maintenance. At the same time, there are many cases in which YC staff have helped to save lives. YCs nationwide organized Zenkoku Yomiuri Bohan Kyoryoku-kai (national Yomiuri crime prevention association ) in 2004 on a voluntary basis. We inform the police of suspicious people, keep watch over elderly residents, hand out crime prevention publications, provide support for crime prevention seminars, and otherwise engage in local crime prevention activities in order to raise awareness of crime prevention.
The Yomiuri Shimbun believes the mission of YCs is facing local issues head on and deepening trust with local residents, and we support them in these activities.