世論 What Japan Thinks

Today’s first goo Ranking is a short one looking at what words or actions by the sales staff in a clothes shop annoy people when they are just browsing.

Demographics

Between the 23rd and 26th of March 2011 1,070 members of the goo Research monitor group completed a private internet-base questionnaire. 53.4% of the sample were female, 10.2% in their teens, 13.1% in their twenties, 24.7% in their thirties, 23.7% in their forties, 13.3% in their fifties, and 15.0% aged sixty or older. Note that the score in the results refers to the relative number of votes for each option, not a percentage of the total sample.

Not being much for shopping for clothes myeslf, I cannot really relate to any of the comments. When I first came to Japan, though, I was looking for jeans, but none of the pairs they got for me fitted (I’m a bit short in the leg), so they asked if I’d like to try on a women’s pair…
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A recent survey from iShare looked at the matter of the colour pink, in particular pink clothing.

Demographics

Between the 18th and 24th of March 2010 497 members of the CLUB BBQ free email forwarding service completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 50.9% of the sample were male, 29.2% in their twenties, 34.4% in their thirties, and 36.4% in their forties.

I don’t have any pink items in my wardrobe, but pink on the right sort of men does look quite cool; pink for cuteness on women doesn’t work for me, although for elegance it does.

When the panel were asked which celebrities suited pink, top for women and second for men was the quite, quite horrendous fashion sense of Pei and Paako Hayashiya:

More suitable answers for men were Audrey’s Kasuga and the lounge lizard Junichi Ishida. For women, the choices were Seiko Matsuda, the irritatingly cutesy Yukorin and vapid Suzanne (she’s in the middle), then Nanako Matsushima and Ebi chan.
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goo Ranking have another fun FAIL survey, this time looking at what personal grooming in the opposite sex takes you aback, for men looking at women and women looking at men.

Demographics

Between the 18th and 21st of December 2009 1,077 members of the goo Research monitor group completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 51.0% of the sample were female, 8.7% in their teens, 15.3% in their twenties, 27.0% in their thirties, 27.8% in their forties, 11.9% in their fifties, and 9.3% aged sixty or older. Note that the score in the results refers to the relative number of votes for each option, not a percentage of the total sample.
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What an ugly headline, but quite an interesting ranking survey from goo Ranking looking at what clothes make guys at dating parties think they should make a move.

Demographics

Between the 18th and 24th of September 2009 1,156 members of the goo Research monitor group completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 63.8% of the sample were female, 10.1% in their teens, 20.8% in their twenties, 30.0% in their thirties, 23.4% in their forties, 9.3% in their fifties, and 6.4% aged sixty or older. Note that the score in the results refers to the relative number of votes for each option, not a percentage of the total sample. This does seem like a rather unusual demographic spread for goo Research.

Earlier in the year I did another survey with the same theme but a different setting.

I personally would vote for this.
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This recent survey from MyVoice looked at the topic of detergents and soaps for washing clothes.

Demographics

Over the first five days of July 2009 15,060 members of the MyVoice internet community successfully completed a private online questionnaire. 54% of the sample were female, 1% in their teens, 14% in their twenties, 36% in their thirties, 30% in their forties, and 19% aged fifty or older.

Q1 is a bit confusing as it doesn’t make clear how husbands should respond, given that I doubt that many married Japanese men actually ever turn on a washing machine. Even I don’t do washing, although at weekends I always help with the hanging out and folding up. Given 46% of the sample being male and 22.6% of the sample not washing clothes themselves, that’s at worst roughly half the men don’t wash clothes. Given that MyVoice’s monitor group’s overall demographics are 55.6% married, then it is probable that the vast majority of the 22.6% on non-washers are husbands, and the rest perhaps children at home, those in dormitories, and those who send everything off to the cleaners. As a translation note, Q1 directly asks about the respondent himself or herself, but Q2 expands to cover the whole family.
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I’ve not actually been into a clothes shop to get stuff for myself for a couple of years, although the last time I did go it was to a Uniqlo, the shop that comes out way on top in this recent survey from MyVoice into casual wear shops.

Demographics

Over the first five days of January 2009 13,923 members of the MyVoice internet community successfully completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 54% of the sample were female, 2% in their teens, 13% in their twenties, 36% in their thirties, 31% in their forties, and 18% aged fifty or older.

I usually buy casual wear at Passport, as they have a nice (read “cheap”) line of hannari tofu clothes. Otherwise I leave the casual shopping up to the wife, who uses mail order on the whole.
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I don’t think I’ve ever bought used clothing, not even as a student, although if I were to buy in Japan it would most likely be a used kimono (see Q8). The other markets that I would have guessed would have been popular would be high-end branded items or evening dresses, but this recent survey from DIMSDRIVE Research into used clothes found otherwise. Note that the survey is not just clothes, but also accessories like shoes, bags and belts.

Demographics

Between the 3rd and 18th of September 2008 10,099 members of the DIMSDRIVE monitor group completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 53.1% of the sample were female, 0.9% in their teens, 13.9% in their twenties, 34.5% in their thirties, 30.5% in their forties, 14.8% in their fifties, and 5.4% aged sixty or older.

My clothes budget is on a needs basis only, with my last purchase being a few pairs of socks at the start of the year.

I’m not aware of a similar chain to Oxfam in Japan that will kit out students for pennies, although if any of my readers can enlighten me…

For reference, I translated a similar survey from MyVoice on used items in general earlier this month.
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Even though shops like Oxfam dress many UK students, charity shops as we might know them in the west basically do not exist in Japan, for various reasons that would be interesting to see investigated through a survey. Indeed, perhaps the full version of this survey reported on by japan.internet.com and conducted by JR Tokai Express Research Inc into used clothes covered that issue, although the highlights below do not.

Demographics

On the 20th of November 2007 334 members of the JR Tokai Express Research online monitor panel completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 56.3% of the sample was male, 4.8% in their teens, 16.5% in their twenties, 37.4% in their thirties, 24.3% in their forties, 8.7% in their fities, 7.5% in their sixties, and for the first time ever for a JR Tokai Express Research poll, 0.9% (or three people) were specifically identified as being aged seventy or older.

I’m not sure how the first answer in Q1SQ2 should be read; is this referring to buying pre-worn jeans or the like, or choosing used for everyday wear as one cannot afford new. I’d also like to see cross-referencings between where purchased and why purchased, and also what sorts of clothes. I can image little stigma being attached to picking up a second-hand kimono, but a box of everyday clothes from a fleamarket is a very different kind of purchase.
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