One surprising innovation in the Japanese hotel industry meant growth skyrocketed during the post war boom. That innovation? Paneled walls for bathrooms. Instead of individually tiling whole bathrooms, a process that held up a lot of the construction, the paneled walls meant whole hotel rooms could be completed much quicker, and helped the development of the Japanese hotel industry remarkably.

Not only the hotel industry, but also in places like convenience stores or in housing can you see such innovations at work. Take a closer look at the brick walls of your 7-11 and you’ll notice it’s just panels with a brick-pattern sticker on top, or the inside of cafes are also very similar. Likewise you can tell that any place using proper materials is in it for the long run.