Recently in Japan Category

Excellent piece in BoF re: Abercrombie's attempt to launch in Japan. Marx goes over all the key areas (so many!) where Abercrombie is failing in Japan.

TOKYO, Japan -- After several years of "will they or won't they" speculation, American casual fashion retailer Abercrombie & Fitch finally opened its first retail store in Japan this past December. The 11-story shop in Tokyo's upscale Ginza neighbourhood is just steps away from Uniqlo's flagship store and Swedish fast fashion brand H&M.

As with every big retail opening in Tokyo, the first day of sales saw long lines of customers and swift business. The rumoured haul: ¥50 million (or about $550,000). Even without the benefit of an opening party or major press event, Abercrombie was able to rely on a small group of Japanese fans who had previously bought the brand's products as souvenirs on trips to Hawaii or the continental United States.

But the big question is, will Abercrombie be able to win over new fans in Japan and replicate the unbelievably successful Japanese market entries of other mass fashion brands?

So far, the signs do not look good.

The Business of Fashion | In Tokyo, Abercrombie Misses Its Mark

Two unrelated news pieces from Business Week today caught my eye:

Japan Is Best Investment Idea for 2010, Wien Says

Japanese stocks may be the best bet among the world's biggest markets in 2010 as the economy improves, according to Blackstone Group LP's Byron Wien.

The Topix Index, which posted the lowest return among benchmark guagues in the 20 largest stock markets in 2009, has risen the most this year, gaining 4.1 percent. Companies are projected to turn profitable in 2010 after producing a combined loss of 40 yen per share in the past 12 months, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

"I would definitely start buying now," Wien, 76, vice chairman of Blackstone Advisory Services and the former chief market strategist for hedge fund Pequot Capital Management Inc., told Bloomberg Radio. "Everybody who could sell Japan has sold Japan. Everybody is on one side of the boat. My view is that we have a pretty good chance of having this one be the best of the major industrialized markets. It's not a boom, but things are getting better."

Then in a separate piece:
Ex-Morgan Stanley Trader Feldschuh Starting Japan Hedge Fund

Traders are opening funds after the industry posted its best returns in a decade last year, gaining 20 percent, according to Hedge Fund Research Inc. Assets may rise to $1.75 trillion by the end of 2010, according to Morgan Stanley estimates.
...
Aristarc will invest in stocks using a market-neutral strategy that bets on, and against, companies in the same industry. Feldschuh's strategy at FrontPoint returned 14 percent in 2008 and 19 percent in 2007, according to the marketing materials.

Let's hope the Nikkei turns around this year. NO DOUBLE DIP!

Richard Katz of The Oriental Economist provides a counter-argument to the mainstream worries about Japanese government debt. I'm leaning more towards Katz but am looking for more guidance.

Now Is Not the Time to Fret About Tokyo's Debts

Matt Alt explains why this:

指定された暗証番号をお忘れの場合は、列車終着駅でお荷物の引渡しとなります。

becomes this...

When the set combination is forgotten, it becomes a delivery of the spare prick in the train terminal station.

I'd laugh if it wasn't such a simple error. It's also prominently displayed on the Narita Express for all of the visitors to Japan to read. Let's wait and see how long it takes JR to fix this gaffe.

The Mysterious Case of the Spare Prick

Last week Hiroko Tabuchi's article in the NYT, Rising Debt a Threat to Japanese Economy, painted a pretty grim picture of Japan's significant debt and what that could mean to the future of Japan. What many may not have seen is Paul Krugman's comment on his blog, Is Japan on the fiscal brink?, where he basically says that the market does not see any problem in Japanese bond yields being low- that the market expects this. If you were concerned by Tabuchi's article, which is more speculative, it's important to look at the market itself, as Krugman does, to see that that this issue is not much of an issue at present.

After the GLOCOM event on Oct. 20th, I'm headed to the Good Ideas Salon, Tokyo, where three people I know are speaking. I've known Peter Rojas since the early days of Gizmodo, where I was an early contributor. Danny is also a good friend as is Mark Dytham. Should be an interesting evening.

Just a quick note to mention that I will be attending the GLOCOM Forum 2009 event, as Kevin Werbach (who I know via Jerry Michalski) is speaking.

moar funny pictures

Japansubculture has an interview with Jake Adelstein, who was previously a police beat reporter for the Yomiuri Shimbun (one of the major national daily papers in Japan), which is remarkable because Adelstein is obviously not Japanese.

I'm definitely looking forward to "Tokyo Vice" and may do a review once I've read it.

Impressive, more so if they are really 13 and 14 years old as I have read...

via Loco in Yokohama