With rooms fully booked, avoid long-term room closures. "Refresh Construction" minimizes downtime for room renovation – an alternative to remodeling. Restore hygiene and beauty to luxury ryokan rooms without re-upholstering.

HONU Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Akasaka, Tokyo; Representative Director: Kenichi Uchida), which specializes in making accommodations non-smoking, deodorizing, and special cleaning, offers "Refresh Construction" to restore the hygiene and aesthetic condition of rooms in ryokan and luxury accommodations. Following a trial period, full-scale service began on July 1, 2026. The cumulative number of rooms serviced has exceeded 6,000 (as of June 2026).

While large-scale interior renovations require long closures of over a month, this service involves thorough cleaning of rooms in their current state to remove mold. It restores room hygiene and beauty with minimal downtime, meeting the needs of facilities that want to maintain room condition while keeping high occupancy rates.

Background: With inbound tourism booming, "room closures" are a heavy management decision.

Against the backdrop of a weak yen and inbound demand, the ryokan and hotel industry continues to experience high occupancy rates. In this situation, closing rooms for extended periods for renovation or aesthetic restoration directly translates to lost opportunities, making it a significant management decision.

On the other hand, the longer rooms are in continuous use, the more deterioration accumulates, such as:

・ Yellowing and odors on wooden parts (pillars, door frames, tabletops, lattices) and walls due to tobacco tar. ・ Water stains and mold in bathrooms, tar stains on ventilation fans and louvers. ・ Mattress stains, reduced airflow due to contamination inside concealed air conditioning units.

These are difficult to improve with regular room cleaning and, if left unaddressed, can impair the quality of the guest experience. However, undertaking full-scale renovations inevitably leads to closures of over a month, creating a dilemma.

Solution: "Refresh Construction" to minimize downtime

Our Refresh Construction restores room hygiene and beauty in their current state.

[1. Aesthetic restoration without replacing parts] Removes yellowing and odors from tar that has penetrated wooden parts such as pillars, door frames, and tabletops, without replacement.

Tatami mats, shoji screens, fusuma sliding doors, curtain rails, and chairs can also be restored using processes tailored to their materials, preserving the aesthetic of Japanese spaces.

[2. Thorough room cleaning and mold removal]

・ Bathrooms: Water stain removal, mold removal, beautification. ・ Ventilation fans/louvers: Tar stain decomposition cleaning. ・ Mattresses: Cleaning (included in basic pricing). ・ Concealed air conditioning: Airflow restoration through disassembly and cleaning (separate fee).

All areas of the room are thoroughly cleaned, and mold in areas like bathrooms and air conditioning units is removed.

We address not only visible dirt but also areas that harbor odors and pose hygiene risks.

[3. Phased construction to minimize downtime] Based on prior room triage (odor and contamination diagnosis for each room), rooms are serviced sequentially according to the facility's operational status. Since construction staff stay at the facility, only specific floors or rooms need to be temporarily closed in phases, avoiding long-term closures of the entire facility.

Comparison with Remodeling

<Interior Remodeling> ・ Method: Replacing wallpaper and parts. ・ Downtime: Often involves long closures of over a month. ・ Wooden parts' appearance: May change due to replacement. ・ Operational impact during construction: Large-scale room closures.

<HONU Refresh Construction>

・ Method: Restoration through thorough cleaning and mold removal without replacement. ・ Downtime: Minimized through phased, room-by-room construction.

・ Wooden parts' appearance: Improved while utilizing existing wooden parts. ・ Operational impact during construction: Sequential construction while staff stay on-site.

*Costs, construction periods, and downtime days vary depending on room size, condition, and level of contamination. Exact details will be calculated based on prior room triage.

Proof of Construction Quality

・ Third-party measurements confirmed an 83% reduction in VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) after construction. ・ At construction sites where third-party measurements were conducted, airflow was restored from 0.50 to 2.00m/s in 21 rooms.

・ Cumulative serviced rooms exceed 6,000 (as of June 2026).

・ Implemented in many prestigious accommodations representing Japan.

Future Development

HONU plans to expand its Refresh Construction menu for ryokan and luxury accommodations in the latter half of 2026. We aim to provide a third option beyond "remodeling or enduring" to meet the industry's need to maintain room conditions while preserving high occupancy.

Service Overview

Service Brand: Power of Catalysts (HONU) Pre-diagnosis: Standard implementation of room triage (odor and contamination diagnosis for each room). Scope of Services: Thorough cleaning, mold removal, tar removal from wooden parts, bathroom beautification, disassembly and cleaning of air conditioning units, mattress cleaning, non-smoking conversion, etc. Inquiries: https://form.run/@honucare-1670988198 Phone: 03-6885-5737

Company Overview

Company Name: HONU Inc. Location: Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo Representative Director: Kenichi Uchida Business Activities: Non-smoking construction, deodorization, and special cleaning for accommodations; disassembly and cleaning of concealed air conditioning units; infection control for medical facilities. Website: https://honucare.co.jp