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Are Japanese girls the world’s trendiest teens? High school girls are the leading trend-setters in Japan. And it’s not just in Japan. They are also credited with fueling many global consumer trends. Even after the initial fashion craze has passed, its longer-term impact can be significant.
“In a society that is aging very, very fast,” says sociologist Mariko Fujiwara, “being young has suddenly become a novelty. These girls realize that being young is marketable, and they can really be the focus of many people’s attention.” Indeed, advertisers are paying close attention to the tastes of this seemingly innocuous demographic.
“Japan is the only country in Asia right now that is a genuine fashion force,” according to StyleTrek.com CEO Joanne Ooi. “Telling a teen customer that an item is popular in Japan is a huge selling point.” Peer pressure is a powerful influence in Japanese high school culture. Once the opinion leaders find something they like, the rest of the class quickly follows. The result of this group drive to spend is that high school girls pay-out approximately $2.5 billion every year. As a result, many Japanese companies are turning towards these opinion leaders to staff their marketing ranks.
Unlike in the US, teen magazines in Japan are a thriving industry. Magazines such as Cutie, ViVi, Cancam, Olive, and Cawaii are strong industry voices, with huge billboard advertising campaigns all over town. Japanese companies work hard to build strong relationships with the magazines, because their endorsement often guarantees street credibility for products.
Japanese teen magazines are a strong influence throughout Asia as well. Cawaii even has a Chinese version that is translated and distributed throughout Asia. In places such as Taiwan, the largest social influence comes from these types of Japanese teen media.
“The teenage world is quite small,” says Hideaki Morita of Teen’s Network Ship, a consulting firm on the teenage market, “and if you know one, you know 100.”
When DoCoMo first created its i-mode service for mobile phones, it was the popularity among Japanese girls that enabled it to catch hold in the market. It was also Japanese schoolgirls who drove the adoption of SMS and this unleashed the mobile data services revolution by turning what was once considered a rather irrelevant handset feature into a global phenomenon.
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Tamagotchi is another example. Introduced in 1996 by the Bandai, the company is unveiling a new version in 2004. Tamagotchi is a virtual handheld pet that quickly became popular among Japanese schoolgirls. Small plastic eggs containing an LCD display, the owner could, by pressing buttons, take care of the pet by feeding it, giving it medicine, playing games with it, and even discipline it. First coveted by Japanese teenage girls and office ladies, the toy quickly spread, spawning long toy store lines and fan clubs around the world. |
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The purchasing power of this young female market is readily evident, but the hardest part is forecasting what the next J-girl driven fashion craze will be. But rest assured, whatever it is JMI will be there to text it to the waiting world!
Sources
1)“The teen dreams of Japan”, BBC News, Sunday, December 28, 1997.
2)“Big in Japan: Forget Honda, Fujitsu, and Sony – Take your next big cue from Tokyo’s teenage girls”, Entrepreneur, December, 2001.
3)“Young Japan”, Time.com Asia, May 3, 1999
4)“Kwest for Kawaii”, Time.com Asia, June 25, 2001 |
