In the first installment of this series, I covered the top trendy items in Japan from 1-5. This time, I’ll be talking about items 6-10. Let’s get started, shall we?
6) Leggings/Tights: It wasn’t too long ago that I gave in to the trend and bought my first pair of tights. While showing a little leg is still “in”, many have opted to cover up. If you’ve got a pair and don’t know how to wear them, you might find a little inspiration in any one of the sites listed here.
7) Goods from Miyazaki Prefecture: Before becoming governor of Miyazaki Prefecture, Hideo Higashikokubaru (aka Sonomanma Higashi or “As It Is” Higashi) was a famous comedian and tv host.
This gives him more of an insight into media in politics than most of his colleagues, I would think. He’s quite popular, and his image has been used widely in the marketing of local products. This uncontrolled branding has actually led to some embarrassing situations (e.g. people using his face to sell fake eels and porn). These little scandals aside, I still think he’s cooler than the Governator.
Here’s a clip from his acting days:
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(He shows up around 1:23 as the gun-toting psycho)
8) High-End Donuts: For a long time (since 1973), if you wanted donuts in Japan, Mister Donuts was your man, er, store. Not that there was anything particularly special about their products—they were just one of the rare stores which made donuts their main focus. Honestly, the best part of Mister Donuts for me isthe Pon de Lion toy set they give with their kiddie meals.
For a long time, Mr. Donuts enjoyed a relatively competition-free reign as Japan’s top donut shop. That all changed, though, with the arrival of the New York-based donut shop, Donut Plant, in 2005. Marketed as being a little more posh and upscale (as much as a donut can be, anyway) sort of place, it was a big hit… At least for the first year. It began loosing popularity in late 2006, around the time, coincidentally, that Japan’s first Krispy Kreme opened. A video of the crazy lines at that location can be seen here (taken this year, a good six months after the store’s initial debut!).
Above are plain donuts from Mister Donut, Donut Plant, and Krispy Kreme. So which donut will reign supreme? Only time will tell, but it seems like the main obstacle to overcome for these companies is moving away from a sugary, heavy donut to a more delicate, airy donut. Japanese pastries and deserts almost always involve less sugar than their Western counterparts, so this is key.
9) iPod Nano: The iPod craze is nothing new, though it’s neat that they keep getting smaller and smaller. I haven’t bought one, actually since I wouldn’t really feel satisfied watching a tv show or movie on such a tiny screen, which is kind of what they’re supposed to be used for, right? At least, that’s the way they’ve been marketed. Luckily, Koichi’s beloved iPhone has a screen that’s plenty big, so I’m always stealing it for long road trips :D
10) Yaki Ramen: To make yakiramen, or fried ramen-style noodles, all you do, it seems, is pour everything that would normally go into a bowl of ramen onto a griddle, fry it, add sauce (ソース), and serve. I’m not exactly sure why yakiramen was such a big thing this year, since it’s not really a new product, nor is it all that much different from the ubiquitous yakisoba (fried wheat noodles).
It does look delicious, though:
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(Those guys have my dream job!)
And that concludes our coverage of the Top Japanese Impulse Buys of 2007 (check out Goo for 11-30). Are you guilty of buying anything this year just for the sake of being trendy? If so, don’t be too hard on yourself—it’s obviously a world-wide phenomenon!
Source: Goo Rankings
Picture Sources: Trendy Nikkei, Atashi, Amazon JP