"Bole COFFEE & ICE CREAM" - Hanegi -
This time for APPLE TREE, we’ll be introducing "Bole COFFEE & ICE CREAM", a store located in the same neighborhood as APPLEBUM's studio.
The owner, Akachi-san, and APPLEBUM designer, Miyao, have been childhood friends since elementary school.
They shared the same era, and now, by chance, both work in the same area.
This time, we asked them about their current "locations" in life.
ーーーーーーー
【How they met】
Miyao and Akachi-san's friendship spans over 40 years.
Their encounter dates back to their elementary school days.
Akachi-san:
"We went to different elementary schools, but we went to the same cram school."
Miyao:
"Yeah, after cram school, we'd take the long way home on our bikes, laughing."
Spending time in their hometown of Kameari, Tokyo, they naturally grew closer.
In an era with limited information, they say there weren't many friends with whom they could share their passions.
Akachi-san:
"Everything was chosen based on whether it was 'cool or not', and there weren't many people in our hometown I could talk to about that."
It was a time when they frequented vintage clothing stores in Ueno, dug for records, and searched for "cool things" that no one else knew about.
More than just childhood friends, they might have been "two people connected by sensibility."
【Cool things that people don't know yet】
In the late 90s, what captivated them next was digital content.
Akachi-san:
"At that time, Macintosh (Apple computer) itself was considered 'cool'."
They say they were strongly drawn to the world of digital design, which only a limited number of people had access to at the time.
Akachi-san:
"Just like HIPHOP, back then there was a strong sense of 'digging for it yourself.'
Digital content also felt like something people didn't know yet, and I thought, 'This looks interesting.'"
Afterward, they both attended university while also enrolling in Digital Hollywood professional school.
Miyao:
"Originally, I wanted to create music videos.
I used to watch MTV and TLC's music videos and think, 'I want to make something like that.'"
Akachi-san:
"Back then, video production and design were still worlds only for a select few professionals.
I believe it was a world you couldn't enter unless you took routes like art universities or film schools.
However, with the emergence of Macs and Adobe software, an atmosphere of 'we can make it ourselves' began to emerge.
We felt like we could 'cheat' with digital (laughs)."
Eventually, Akachi-san launched "Tangram."
Akachi-san:
"It wasn't so much about 'starting a company' as it was about 'let's try to do it ourselves.'"
【DIY Spirit】
Akachi-san:
"In the past, photography was done by photographers, video by videographers, and web by web designers – everything was separated. But with the arrival of Macs and digital tools, things gradually started to change, and the feeling of 'we can do it ourselves' grew stronger."
Miyao:
"It was the same for APPLEBUM. Back then, there weren't many brands running their own online stores, but APPLEBUM started right away. There were no e-commerce platforms or marketplaces like there are now, so we really started from scratch (laughs)."
Web stores, videos, design.
They create what they need with their own hands.
That DIY spirit naturally connects to their current activities.
Akachi-san:
"Ultimately, I think it's because we 'love creating.'"
Clothes, videos, spaces.
Though the genres differ, the underlying sensibility of the two has remained unchanged.
【Bole as a place】
And now, the place Akachi-san runs in Hanegi is "Bole COFFEE & ICE CREAM."
Akachi-san:
"I originally ran a coffee and ice cream shop called 'Bridge' in Bakurocho, and Bole opened as our second store.
I want it to be a place like a 'park' that is loved by the locals.
A place where people can come even without a specific purpose.
You don't have to drink coffee, you can just chat for a bit and leave.
I hope it becomes that kind of place."
At Bole, you'll find people drinking coffee, eating ice cream, and neighbors casually dropping by.
It's perhaps closer to the feeling of "opening a space" than "creating a store."
【Specialty Ice Cream】
And when talking about Bole, ice cream is indispensable.
The sight of people chatting outside the store with ice cream in hand has become a common scene in this place.
Akachi-san:
"Ice cream is just good, you know. It feels more casual than coffee.
Kids and seniors alike can easily come to buy it."
In fact, Bole's ice cream is packed with meticulous attention to detail in its ingredients and production methods.
They personally taste and select the milk and fruits used in the ice cream, and the limited-time seasonal flavors started from a desire to turn delicious seasonal ingredients into ice cream.
Akachi-san:
"Even for the ice cream machine, we wanted to choose something we truly believed was good. It's always been our standard: 'Is this something we truly think is good?'"
【Good things about Hanegi】
Akachi-san:
"Hanegi, the whole town is great.
If a cafe just 'went viral on Instagram,' people often visit once and that's it.
But around here, walking the streets feels good, and the air is pleasant.
So I think people want to come back."
Indeed, Bole's surroundings exude the tranquil atmosphere typical of independent shops and residential areas.
Akachi-san:
"I think the whole area is charming."
The reason Bole naturally attracts people is not only because of its ice cream and coffee, but also deeply connected to the atmosphere of the town of Hanegi.
The cut flowers displayed in the store are one of the things that connect it to this town.
Akachi-san:
"The flower shop across from Bole, 'Malta,' delivers flowers to us every week.
It's like a subscription, and we always have seasonal flowers displayed in the store."
Not just coffee and ice cream, but such everyday scenes also create Bole's atmosphere.
Furthermore, events that connect the entire area, such as "Hanegi Marche," are regularly held.
Akachi-san:
"The close proximity with everyone is also a point I like about the Hanegi area."
The two who hit it off as elementary school students continue to pursue "what they truly believe is good."
The two have continued to create, trusting their own sensibilities.
And now, "Bole COFFEE & ICE CREAM" is an extension of that.
"I want it to be a place like a park."
True to Akachi-san's words, people naturally gather at Bole today, spending their time there.
A new store is also planned to open within the year, near Hanegi Park in Setagaya Ward.
We are also looking forward to another "place where people naturally gather."
Bole COFFEE & ICE CREAM is frequented by APPLEBUM staff.
With the fresh greenery making this season so pleasant, why not take a stroll through Hanegi and stop by?
===========================
Akachi Takayuki | Video Artist / Brand Director
Video artist / Brand director.
Has worked as a video artist creating PR videos, commercials, and promotional films for companies and brands.
Based on the sensibility and compositional skills cultivated through video production, he interprets the philosophy and worldview of brands, designing and directing across video, space, products, and experiences.
At "Bridge," a long-established store celebrating its 15th anniversary and widely known in the coffee industry, and "Bole," which is in its third year in Hanegi, he consistently directs everything from brand signage and menu development to store design and cutlery.
He excels at designing brand experiences that are rooted in the community and naturally blend into daily life.
In recent years, he has also been in charge of the store direction for the jewelry brand "bororo" Aoyama store.
Starting from the perspective of a video artist, he creates a brand worldview that goes beyond just video.
akachi.jp
===========================
Bole COFFEE & ICECREAM
〒156-0042
1-19-19 Hanegi, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo IGH CT03
Access: 6 minutes walk from Shindaita Station on the Keio Inokashira Line
Business hours: 9:00 - 18:00
Instagram：https://www.instagram.com/bole.hanegi?igsh=aDZoYjkzc2RpdHdp
===========================
