Prior to this didn't they lose a lot of the little parts stores/stall in... I think it was Akihabara IIRC? I am struggling to re-find the name of the area, it was like a giant open air radio shack and it's my understanding has been shrinking and/or disappeared.
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Radio kaikan. It's been remade to focus on anime/otaku stuff like the rest of akibahara. There just isn't the demand for buying niche electronic parts in person anymore.
It still remains though. In Osaka dendentown there is a shop that exclusively sells screws.
Its not that. Its that Japan lost the tech lead so they have nothing to offer that's distinct that cannot be found in our own mega distribution channels (Amazon).
I remember when living there of the marvel of teenagers having GPS in their own cars circa 1999. Or the incredibly advanced cell phones miles ahead of their western counterparts. That's no longer the case.
Now you can find everything, much cheaper, and more conveniently, right here in the US.
Akihabara was over when Amazon and Alibaba opened the floodgates of distribution to Chinese and American electronic manufacturers.
If you want kirkland brand, you have to go to Costco. There's no equivalent for japanese electronics anymore.
There are still niche electronic shops in Akihabara though: the ones under the tracks, Radio Department Store, Aisan, and the back streets parallel to the main street.
Are you thinking about Tokyo Lens coverage?
Saying Goodbye to Tokyo's TINIEST Shop | Akihabara Tokyo Lens · Aug 14, 2022 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nA1UNJirOTI
I Rebuilt JAPAN'S TINIEST SHOP!! Tokyo Lens · Aug 20, 2023 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsimPVu1aLU
No, it was a long line of stalls... the origin of the term "electric town" not any singular place.
That is akihabara itself https://www.gotokyo.org/en/spot/55/index.html
It started out like that and then lot of otaku shops opened and now akiba is known more for its otaku shops than the electric ones.
I may be wrong, but I'm 99% certain that has to be Akihabara.