A New Take on Japan’s Umbrella Culture! A Stackable Umbrella Stand That Transforms Your Entryway
Hi, I’m Hide — tech journalist and part-time house-husband. This time I’m introducing something a little unusual for a gadget column: an umbrella stand.
Official site: ZENLET
For my articles, I sometimes receive products on loan or as samples from companies, within the bounds of Yahoo! News’ rules. However, if a product doesn’t meet my standards for writing about it after actually using it, or if its downsides significantly outweigh its good points, I return it and don’t write about it. I don’t receive any payment from companies.
Great as a compact umbrella stand
I’d tried various umbrella stands before, but never found one I liked, so I just wasn’t using one. What won me over with this ZENLET stand — besides already liking their minimal products — was how simple and versatile it is.
Our entryway had no room for an umbrella stand, so we’d been asking guests to leave umbrellas outside. Now, in a tiny leftover spot, we can stand up to eight folding or regular umbrellas.
The legs also let water drain in any direction, which makes it the ideal umbrella stand. With stands that have a bottom, you have to worry about mold and grime, and even plastic ones collect dirt.
This ZENLET stand is a single piece of cast aluminum alloy, so it’s super durable and resists dirt to a degree. It’s really well thought out in ways people tend to overlook.
At first I wondered, “Is this really any good?” But once you actually use it, you get it. It’s so well designed it’s a mystery why something like this didn’t exist before.
Stack them normally, spread them out when needed
Another great point: stack them to save space normally, and spread them out when you need them. For places like cram schools or convenience stores, which don’t need a stand most of the time but get flooded with umbrellas on rainy days, being able to expand is super effective.
Keeping a big stand out all the time gets in the way, turns into a dumping ground for abandoned umbrellas, and can even lead to theft. With this ZENLET stand, you keep it compact and expand it on rainy days to hold lots of umbrellas. It’s also low, so it feels more like a place to lean your umbrella briefly than to leave it — which I think helps prevent abandoned umbrellas.
Easy to clean
Since it’s one-piece die-cast aluminum, cleaning is easy. It resists rust and you can just rinse the whole thing, so it’s never a chore like old umbrella stands.
If I had to name a downside people might notice, maybe it’s a bit spiky-looking and could be more minimal.
But practically speaking, anything enclosed would trap dirt, and I think this surface texture (a grippy finish like on cookware that makes grime easy to clean off) and shape are part of what keeps it clean.
It’s a gem that made me actually want to use an umbrella stand again. If you’re curious, give it a try.
This story was originally published (in Japanese) on Yahoo! News Japan Expert.
