Products such as this home grill kit are currently selling well in Japan.

At a time when retail sales in many sectors are falling, one area in which sales are actually rising is items that can be used for do-it-yourself activities at home. It seems that Japanese consumers are increasingly opting not to go out, but rather stay at home to practice self-enriching hobbies such as cooking with the family, making clothing, or growing food.

This home shiitake mushroom growing kit has become a surprise hit product.

Consumers are saving money by eating out less, but are also investing in near professional-grade kitchen tools, such as rice milling machines, high-tech rice cookers, fondue sets, and pressure cookers.  Kitchen appliance manufacturer Iwatani reports that sales in the last quarter of 2008 increased by 43% in the niche of home grills to make fried octopus and skewered chicken, foods which are usually available at outdoor food stands. Another hit product is a kit that allows users to grow shiitake mushrooms at home, suggesting that consumers want to have fun in the kitchen.

Other products that have been doing well, such as electric hair clippers, hair irons, and hair dyes seem to indicate consumers are giving up trips to the hair salon in favor of doing the job themselves at home. There is also a strong sense of self-improvement with this brand of at-home consumerism. One of the hit products of late 2008-early 2009 is the “Core Rhythms” series of exercise DVDs, which incorporate moves from Latin dancing into at-home work outs.

Since 2004, Panasonic has been selling a lineup of beauty appliances that generate nano-sized steam particles to moisturize facial skin, offering Japanese women an affordable way to replicate the beauty salon experience at home.

Recently, the company has released a new product that represents a paradigm shift not only in the beauty appliance category, but might have broader repercussions. It has launched a steamer that no longer requires users to sit in front of the machine like previous models. Instead, it can be used while sleeping, making it easy to use fro even the most time-pressed women. It also expands it benefits by delivering moisture to hair as well as facial skin.

Technological innovations aside, introducing a product that can be used while sleeping might well turn out to be a stroke of genius for the company, and could spark a broader trend for brands to stop competing for the busy and limited waking hours of consumers, and instead offer products that fulfill their function while consumers are sleeping.

A number of similar products have already appeared in the market. A small manufacturer has recently released a blanket that contains so-called moisture care silk and promises skin-care effects while sleeping, while another company has released fragrant sheets that can be attached to the pillow case.

Pampers Premium Care diapers.

The birth rates has been steadily falling in Japan, and marketers are hoping that as parents have fewer children, the will spend more on each child.

P&G Japan has released Pampers Premium Care, available exclusively through Babies ‘R Us, the Japanese retailer Akachan Honpo, and mail order. The price is around 2,000 yen for a package of 60, considerably more expensive than around 1,500 yen for the same number of normal Pampers. The premium diapers are said to be better at preventing diaper rash through improved air circulation.

Learn more:
Other P&G Products
P&G Japan Official Site (Japanese)

This manga character was designed to market laundry detergent.

Household goods manufacturer Lion is using a fictional comic book character to advertise its Acron laundry detergent, which has two new scents, deodorant green and floral bouquet. The character developed especially for the product by Yukari Ichijou, one of the most famous artists manga for young woman. The gorgeous character’s name is “Yoshiko Sentaku,” whose last name means “laundry.”  Yoshiko’s 32 years old, single, lives in Tokyo, and dreams of one day having a fully automatic washing machine. The campaign is targeting women in their 20s and 30s.

Learn more:
Other Lion products
Lion official site
Yoshiko Sentaku product page (Japanese)

A recent event held at Architect Cafe in the fashionable district of Aoyama in Tokyo had an atmosphere similar to a networking event. Products on display included sweets, soap, aroma, cheese and interior goods. Products on sale were from large brands such as Jalux and Lion, as well as small businesses that ordinarily sell only online. Admission to the event was 1,500 yen (around $15). All participants received 1,000 yen worth or products from Lion, a major manufacture of body care and housecleaning goods, and Suntory provided free drinks at the bar.

The shopping parties provide companies with a chance to target consumers in a fun and casual setting. For participants, it is opportunity to have a “girls night out” as well as a way for professional women to exchange business cards.

Learn more:
Other stories on Lion
Other stories on Suntory

Bandai has teamed up with Lotte to release a range of bath tablets in 6 of their popular gum flavours including blueberry, green mint and coffee.

The trunk station is designed to fit in the average Japanese apartment.

Office furniture maker Soho St. has begun marketing “Trunk Station,” a space efficient, compact home office that closes into a trunk when not in use. When opened, the office space is large enough to house a laptop or desktop computer, desk lamp, books and files.

Although the trunk is on wheels, it is not quite portable enough to allow commuters to drag it back and forth to the workplace. Rather, the idea is to close it and push it into a corner during the week, and open it up for a bit of weekend work.

The Trunk Station is ideal for the growing number of Japanese who are not satisfied with the satisfaction or salary gained by their main jobs, and are dabbling in foreign currency exchange or Internet-based home businesses in the evenings or on weekends.

The trunk station quickly opens when needed.

National

National Electric has launched a new home beauty care product for women that uses ultrasonic waves and vibrations to clean out facial pores, kill bacteria that causes pus in larger pores on the nose, and make facial features better defined. Facial pores free of foreign particles become smaller, giving the skin a smoother look overall.

The unit, called the “Ke-ana Esute” (“Pore Aesthetic”) retails for around ¥20,000 (US $200) at online retailers such as Amazon Japan. The device is cordless and water-proof, allowing it to be used in the bath.

Advertisements for the new product in Tokyo trains include actual holes in a poster of a woman’s face, making a point about how vulnerable skin is to pollutants.

In the past, National Electric has released beauty appliances such as their “Nano Steam Facial Cleaner” for women and shortly after released the same concept retooled men. So we are likely to see a similar ultrasound product for guys in the near future.

Advertisements for the new product make a point about skin pores with actual holes in the posters.