Hello again from Japan. My wife and kids got home from the U.S. last night, so my quiet week spent rattling around the house along has come to an end at last. As usual, the kids came back chirping away happily in English, especially my daughter Rina, who absorbs English like a sponge when she visits the U.S. (but reverts to full Japanese just as quickly when she comes home). It’s nice having them all back safely.
Japan’s long ongoing recession continues, as business remains bad for many industries. Prices in Japan are actually falling, due to a deflationary spiral the country has fallen into — it seems every day, I see a something that costs less today than it did a few years ago, from McDonald’s hamburgers to Yoshinoya beef bowl to clothes. But not all aspects of the Japanese economy are in recession: while hard times may be falling on some fringe industries like makers of toilet seats that wash your butt (we have one of these at home by the way), manufacturers in core industries like housing and automobiles are doing surprisingly well. Honda recently posted their most profitable quarter in their history, earning $905 million on $16 billion in automobile sales, showing that Japanese consumers haven’t stopped spending money altogether, they’ve just narrowed their spending habits and aren’t wasting money on frivolous things.
There are many key reasons why much of Japan is having economic troubles. First and foremost is the sea of bad loans that are smothering Japan’s banking industry, which came about originally when Japan’s stock-and-land bubble burst at the start of the 1990’s — banks had issued billions in loans using land as collateral, but now the value of the original land has fallen by as much as half, causing a banking crisis ten times worse than the Savings and Loan problem in the U.S. back in the 1980s. Most of Japan’s industries are very mature, and they lack the innovation and “eye of the tiger” that some other Asian nations such as South Korea have shown in opening new markets. Japan’s population is an aging one, and business owners in their 50s and 60s don’t have the same ability to cope with change as younger people might. Most leaders of Japan’s corporations are also nearing retirement, and grow more and more averse to taking on risks that might do harm to the company and endanger their own retirement savings. Finally, while America bubbles with entrepreneurial energy (just pick up an issue of Inc Magazine to feel it), I see very little interest by young Japanese in embarking on the great adventure of starting their own businesses — which is really sad, since I can tell you what a thoroughly fulfilling experience it can be. Sadly, it’s just not a part of the culture of business here as it is in the U.S.
One thing foreigners notice when they come to Japan is the practice of putting samples of the food in restaurant windows so prospective customers can see how delicious the food is before they go in. The sample “food” is made of wax so it will keep for a long time, and the creation of delicious-looking fake food is an established form of art that goes back into Japan’s Edo Period. Part of the start-up costs for opening a restaurant include hiring a company that does nothing but make fake wax food to create samples of the items on the menu to display to customers. There are competitions in Japan for wax food artists to compete to see who can make the most delicious fake food.
New in stock for fans of our funny Japanese T-shirts, an esoteric four-character Japanese message that could be translated as “Respect men, women are lowly” or “Up with male domination.” It describes the attitude in males that they are naturally superior to women, an idea that is still very much a part of Japanese society today — a taboo message, but one that’s bizarre and fun to wear. Great for shocking Japanese people, plus it’s a very attractively designed 100% cotton T-shirt.
Also, we’ve updated many items on the J-List site, adding fresh stock of many DVD, manga, toy, and “wacky” items for you to browse and enjoy. We’ve got new and back-in-stock Hello Kitty items for you, some excellent photobooks and rare comics, new Japanese snack and food items (including more miso soup mix, can’t keep that in stock). Also, fresh stock of many toy items, including even more Domo-kun phone straps (everyone loves Domo-kun), and fresh stock of our best-selling talking gyroscopic light saber, released only in Japan by Tomy. Please enjoy the newly posted items!
Remember that Japan’s 2003 calendar season is right around the corner. Very soon we’ll have hundreds of great JPOP, idol, anime and other rare calendars from Japan for you to order (we’re waiting for the calendar material from our distributor). We’ve already posted the first volley of calendars for you to browse, so check out the excellent and uniquely Japanese items already available for preorder. Of course they make great gifts, too.
J-List sells many nice and unique products from Japan, and one that we’re especially proud of are the authentic school uniforms made by Matsukameya of Nagoya, Japan. These excellent uniforms are of the highest quality, and although they cost more than some cheesy imitation items we might have chosen (summer uniform tops start at $125, the high-quality pleated skirts at $135), we think you will be completely satisfied with these truly unique icons of Japanese culture. An especially good thing about Matsukameya’s school uniforms is that you can choose from many styles, and many sizes, too — consult the handy measurement chart to see which size is right for the intended recipient.
