Changing of the guard: The values of Japanese millennials

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In the West, we tend to look at Japanese youth culture as an exotic and somewhat eccentric place. We focus on its pop-culture phenomena – from kazai (cute) to the cat cafés, the gaming, and nerd culture, which all, of course, exist. But Thinktank’s recent qualitative research in Japan points to a serious value shift among young people that is making them a very different proposition from previous generations.

The yutori, roughly the millennial generation aged between 20 and 35, are quietly abandoning traditional values, including some of the conformity for which Japanese culture is known. Among the key differences is a need for self-expression, but also less desire to consume and, instead, being content to lead a more frugal, constrained lifestyle.

They have embraced the spirit of mottainai – meaning ‘how wasteful’ – which derives from the Buddhist notion of lamenting the misuse of objects and resources, as well as from the need to be grateful for what the world has given us. That’s a notion Japanese millennials really do buy into – yutori translates roughly as having the time and the space to appreciate life. And it also seems to mean being relaxed about living within constraints.

For example, 26-year-old Keiko, who we encountered in a recent group in Tokyo, rents rather than buys her clothes. That’s highly sustainable behaviour. It’s also, of course, very mottainai.

As in the West, there has been a move towards subscription clothing. The Mechakari service, from lifestyle group Stripe International, targeted women in their 20s and 30s with a starter sub, giving them the chance to wear three branded items a month for a monthly fee of 5,800 yen. Last year, as Covid-19 impacted the economy, Stripe came up with a ‘Lite’ plan, costing just shy of 3,000 yen.

The rental model has also gained traction among yutori for home furnishings, and at the start of this year, were joined by leading retailer Muji – a favoured millennial brand. Shoppers can choose from a range of subscription furniture, with a chair, for example, coming in at a reasonable 300 yen a month over four years. Once an item is returned, Muji sends it back out for rental or puts it up for sale.

This means that Covid-19 has had much less impact on the young Japanese psyche than it appears to have done in the West.

According to a recent Media Brands survey, life satisfaction has remained fairly high among young Japanese, who enjoy having more free time and don’t resent not travelling abroad or going to restaurants. Interest in foreign travel is surprisingly low – more than half of yutori have never travelled outside Japan, while a substantial subset have no interest in doing so either. Abroad is not aspirational, but, rather, unsafe – an impression that has grown since the early 2000s and during the pandemic.

The generational sea change in perspectives has affected views on the work-life balance. Everyone is aware of the corporate system that dominated the country after World War II and resulted in jobs for life for most, but that has now morphed. A long period of low economic growth has had an impact on job prospects, and non-regular employees now make up more than a third of the workforce.

“My job just isn’t that important – I don’t want it to interfere with my private life,” 28-year-old Michi told our Tokyo group. “And as far as money goes, well, as long as I have enough to make ends meet, then that’s fine really.”

This attitude of ‘just getting by’ has impacted retail. Budget fashion retailer Uniqlo is a yutori destination, as is sister store GU, which differentiates itself with even lighter price tags for its clothing. Japan’s 100-yen shops are popular outlets, and chains such as Seria and Daiso offer an array of items, from beauty products through to snacks and toys, many of them high-quality.

Covid-19 means yutori behaviours have become more entrenched. Japan’s savings rate was at its highest level in 20 years in 2020 as economic anxiety rose, and it is unlikely to fall significantly until the pandemic is over. The government made cash handouts to households last year to help boost the economy, but much of that money was banked.

The implications for consumer spending are clear. According to a McKinsey survey from December 2020, one-quarter of Japanese consumers said they are now more mindful of where they spend their money, while the same proportion are looking for ways to save money when they shop.

What does this mean for marketing to Japanese millennials? Thinktank’s experience in Japan indicates that the cachet of Western brands – which has for some time been lower in Japan than in other Asian countries – is likely to decline further. We cannot hope for provenance to help us sell if large parts of the audience feel they have ‘nothing in common’ with countries further afield.

There is a need to redefine aspiration to appeal to a Japanese generation that is looking for sustainable products and for authentic experiences. This may sound familiar, but these needs come with a particular Japanese accent – what yutori crave is a sense of understatement, usefulness and purpose with relevance to their local day-to-day lives. Perhaps to make a play for this generation, Western brands need to channel their inner mottainai.

• Japan’s population is set to shrink from 126 million to 105 million by 2050
• Millennials account for 22% of the population
• In contrast, the 55 to 75 age group was 26% of Japan’s population

(United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division – 2019 )

Sabine Stork is founding partner at insight consultancy Thinktank