Pachinko DNA as Business Code

“In the third month, Mitsunori readjusted the pinball machines so he made ¥50m and then he went back to losing another ¥50m in his fourth month. Mitsunori was prepared to lose everything to make a fortune. His son would be no different. Pachinko culture was embedded in his DNA.”

“The level of his personal indebtedness was reckless, his financial targets insanely ambitious. After two weeks, he’d fallen well short. The gambler improvised, ordering his pachinko engineer to rearrange the pins so every customer won $100 to $200. After a month, he’d lost ¥50m ($350,000 on contemporary exchange rates), but Lions was the most popular gambling joint in town. ‘I was down to my last ¥50m,’ Mitsunori recalled. ‘I was prepared to go bankrupt and make a run for it.’[24](private://read/01jg9b8njt7zc5haz30afb9n29/#ch02_24)”