It’s every child’s dream to spend a day at the candy store, pockets full of money to spend however they please. Giving kids everywhere the chance to live out this dream is Mirai Seisakujyo, a sweets shop in Kobe that’s only for kids.

It sort of looks like a museum from the outside, but the entrance door is only 105cm tall (3.4 feet) and 60cm wide (2 feet), allowing only small children inside. Specifically, only children in sixth grade or under can venture inside the shop, and adults are prohibited from entering at all.

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Source: Sakan Co., Ltd.

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After handing their children some change to buy sweets and waving goodbye, the parents and guardians are sent to wait inside a cave-like, domed room to wait for the children’s return. Inside is a vending machine that sells a snack called “Matteru,” which means “I’ll be waiting” in Japanese. The snacks even come in cute little milk cartons!

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Source: Sakan Co., Ltd.

Once the kids are inside, they wash their hands and are invited to see the pastry chefs at work. After watching how all the glorious sweets are made in the shop, they can finally start shopping. The best part is, they get to buy delicious sweets that come straight out of the oven!

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Since the inside can’t be seen by adults, the children are often made to carry cameras for their curious parents. This way the kids can enjoy their visit, and the adults can rest assured that their curiosity won’t be left unsatisfied.

There are also staff inside to look out for all the kids, so even small children can have the time of their lives, safe and sound.

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Pastry chef Susumu Koyama described the reasoning behind this “adult-free” confectionery store in this way:

For children, it’s important to find things that they will feel they want to share with others from the bottom of their hearts. It’s imperative for us to give them those ‘seeds.’ When kids start giving up on sharing thoughts and emotions, they eventually forget how to collect the ‘seeds’ altogether. They have to find, collect, and share ‘seeds.’ My hope is that I’ll be able to contribute to the growth of these children.

Translated from es-koyama

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By - grape Japan editorial staff.