Top 10 Trendy Things in 2024 According to Japanese Gen Z

What is Japan’s Gen Z population like?

Gen Z refers to those born after 1997 and before 2012.

Japanese Gen Z are stereotypically thought to be tech-savvy due to their early introduction to technology compared to earlier generations. They are also considered to be avoidant of conflicts and arguments, less interested in higher education and corporate jobs, and focused on enjoying life. A stark contrast to many previous generations that were career-focused sometimes to the point of overwork and even death.

The generational shift has brought a stronger importance to creating a healthy work-life balance. (Source.)

Top 10 Trendy Things Chosen by Japanese Gen Z

So, what are the top trends chosen by Japan’s Gen Z according to WWD Japan?

Source: WWD Japan, “Z世代で何が流行っている？「2024年上半期トレンドランキング」発表”

Social Media Platforms

While LINE, Instagram, and X are the top social media platforms, Gen Z users are more familiar with global platforms like Discord, Threads, Whoo, and BeReal compared to those over 25.

Source: CyberAgent, “サイバーエージェント次世代生活研究所、「Z世代のSNS利用率」を発表！”

The new rise in popularity of the social media platform BeReal was surprising at first until I delved deeper into the characteristics of Japan’s Gen Z population.

Gen Z in Japan’s tendency to place a higher value on authenticity and living in the moment makes them the ideal audience for BeReal. BeReal is a social media platform that encourages people to share their authentic selves as the app notifies everyone to post at the same time. Sometimes referred to as social media without filters, users have ten minutes to snap a shot of whatever it is they’re doing when the post notification goes out, so, there isn’t time to curate the perfect angle or fabricate a glamorous and unrealistic life. (Source.)

Kawaii Characters

Japan’s mascots are a significant part of its culture. Three non-Manga or Disney characters ranked among the top 10 trendy items chosen by Gen Z. These characters have a huge following in Japan and Korea, with experiential pop-up booths held globally.

Cute characters have long been popular in Japan and also as an export from Japan to fans overseas. The rise in social media use has naturally allowed for the growth in popularity of many new characters.

Opanchu Usagi translates to Underwear Bunny. The almost crying, unfortunate, but cute bunny resonates with the Japanese GenZ who are eager to support and encourage the bunny.

Here is one of the pop-ups held in Japan. The display replicated the sad, but amicable little room that the Opanchu Usagi lives in.

So why are characters like this so popular among Japan’s Gen Z population? It’s difficult to pinpoint, but they seem to bring joy. Characters both cute and strange, have long been popular in Japan with new ones emerging all the time and the classics staying popular throughout the generations. (Source.)

Interested in learning more about the cute and quirky characters of Japan?
Check out our article: Japanese Yurukyara: The Cute and Quirky Mascots Taking Over Japan.

Food Culture

In Japan, viral trends receive concentrated attention, especially for cute and aesthetic foods.

Source: WWD Japan, “Z世代で何が流行っている？「2024年上半期トレンドランキング」発表”

In another ranking from the report by WWD Japan, it reported that acai bowls were a hit in the first half of 2024, with 71.2% of voters choosing them.

Many of these food trends, and trends in general, have been influenced by social media. With the continued rise in short form video content, many of these foods are growing in popularity thanks to their flammability. Like this “Cat Pudding,” the cute little jiggling motion makes it so much cuter in video over photo content.

Although it is ranking a bit lower on the list, the trend of “Convenience Store DIY Drinks” is worth explaining. In Japan, convenience stores are located on almost every corner and they provide a wide selection of drinks, jellies, unique seasonal products, foods, laundry detergent, and almost anything you could need all at affordable prices.

Interested in learning more about convenience stores in Japan?
Check out our article: Unraveling the Fascination of Japanese Konbinis.

On social media, people are creating unique DIY drinks with products from the convenience store as shown in the video below.

This trend seems to have a lot of similarities to the “Watertok” trend in the U.S. where people mix different flavors to create uniquely flavored “waters”.

Micro Trends

With all of these rising trends, it makes you wonder, which of these trends are built to last? After all, you don’t want to build a marketing strategy based around a trend that may be outdated in a number of weeks.

What is a Micro Trend?
A “micro trend” is a tendency in the direction of some phenomenon that is fairly pervasive within a given sphere of influence and may only last for a few years, or even months. (Source.)

With the rise of TikTok and increased influence of social media on our culture, especially Gen Z, trend cycles have become faster and more difficult to keep up with if you’re not in the loop. Even as this article is published, some of these trends may already be fading.

So, when trying to bring your product to the Japanese market how can you expect to know about these ever changing trends?

btrax has a team of experts in our offices in San Francisco and Tokyo, specializing in market research and more. If you are looking to enter the Japanese market and need help creating a market entry strategy contact us here to find out how we can help you today.