Profiting from Japan's Long, Hot Summer

Barely three months after a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami rocked Japan, the island nation is well along in the difficult process of rebuilding. Now comes the latest challenge: a summer with minimal air conditioning. With the government intent on cutting energy use to avoid overtaxing eastern Japan's strained power system, many businesses and individuals say they will restrict the use of air conditioning during Japan's sticky summer season. The prospect is spurring demand for everything from sun-blocking goya vines to clothing fabric designed to wick away body sweat.

Sales of so-called green curtain kits, used to grow goya vines on trellises that block sun rays from a building's exterior walls, have jumped ninefold this year at Rakuten, Japan's biggest online retailer. Hitachi, the country's second-biggest private employer, is draping factories with the plants and handing out seeds to employees for use at home, a strategy that electronics maker Kyocera (KYO) is sharing.