Thursday, November 29, 2007

Whisky & Chocolate



Lotte and Suntory have teamed up once again, this time to release a limited edition set of Whisky and chocolate in time for next year's Valentine Day.

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Dean & Deluca



Dean & Deluca has released a new and seasonal flavour for its premium ice-cream line with "Modena Balsamic Vinegar with Fig".

Monday, November 26, 2007

White goods go ECO



The large Japanese manufacturers of household electronics have launched campaigns touting the environmental friendliness of their products in recent months. Slogans are quite similar (Toshiba with Eco Style and National with Eco Ideas) and seem to try and persuade consumers to trade in their current products for the latest, energy-saving model.

Friday, November 23, 2007

Suntory Smoothie



Suntory has come up with a new take on the liquid breakfast with this Fruit and Tofu Smoothie

Monday, November 19, 2007

Spot the difference




From time to time, Japanse companies release what can only be considererd brazen imitations of their competitor's package design. The most recent example are Ebisu and Kirin - one of the above is a so-called third beer (brewed without malt) and retailing for about 130 Yen for a 350ml can, the other a premium beer sold for approximately twice that amount.

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Virginia Slims Noire



Virginia Slims "Noire" is the latest tobacco brand targeted at women.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Eneloop Kairo



Sanyo has released a rechargeable and thus eco-friendly pocket-warmer with the Eneloop Kairo

Monday, November 12, 2007

Sony integrates LISMO!



KDDI has announced that the next generation 'LISMO' mobile music download service will be fully compatible with Sony audio equipment, allowing owners of Sony's NETJUKE HDD stereo system to back up and play music files downloaded using an au mobile phone or transfer music stored in 'NETJUKE' directly to an au mobile phone or Walkman - without using a PC.

Thursday, November 08, 2007

Glico Almond Premio



Glico has released a premium version of its almond chocolate sweets with Premio.

Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Haagen Dazs Kokuto & Kuromitsu



Haagen Dazs Japan has released another flavour inspired by traditional Japanese ingredients with Kokuto & Kuromitsu, brown sugar and sugar syrup.

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

SUICA goes ECO



Train operator JR East is jumping on the recent craze for re-usable shopping bags with the SUICA de Eco campaign, offering new users of its smart card SUICA the chance to win a cute SUICA cloth shopping bag.

Thursday, November 01, 2007

Peace Infinity



The premium trend that has been evident in so many recent new product launches in the food and beverage sectors has reached cigarettes - Japan Tobacco has released Peace Infinity, a premium version of its Peace brand.

Monday, October 29, 2007

Starbucks Discoveries Paris



Starbucks has released the latest addition to its RTD coffee brand Discoveries with Paris. The drink follows the recent trend towards bitter flavours and is not sweetened.

Sunday, October 28, 2007

Clorets HOT



Cadbury's Clorets chewing gums now come in Spicy Cinnamon as well.

Friday, October 26, 2007

Lotte Beni



Lotte's new health and energy drink Beni is targeted at women.

Monday, October 22, 2007

Face mask goes fashion



Unicharm has released a new face mask in its successful Rittai series specifically targeted at women and teamed up with the online community site Girlsgate to provide tips on a face mask as the ultimate fashion accessoire.

Saturday, October 20, 2007

Hello Kitty



Interestingly, the world's first Hello Kitty Jet. Interestingly, the plane is not operated by a Japanese airline, but Eva Air from Taiwan, where Hello Kitty appears to be even bigger than in Japan.

Hello Kitty is everywhere on board of this plane - including of course the welcome video, where she can be seen doing a somewhat un-Japanese dance.

Monday, October 15, 2007

Vegetable Yogurt



Otsuka is trying to establish a completely new product category - vegetable yogurts - with Yasai no Senshi.

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Suntory goes mint



Suntory has released Cool Mint Cider, a mint-flavoured soft drink developed in cooperation with Lotte's Cool Mint chewing gum brand.

Monday, October 01, 2007

Pro Tec Head



Lion has released a new hair-care line for men called PRO TEC HEAD, which consists of four products and offers a new care system to revent hair loss and thinning.

Friday, September 28, 2007

Bitter Caramel



Haagen Dazs Japan has recognized the recent trend to non-sweetened snacks and beverages and has released Bitter Caramel.

Saturday, September 01, 2007

National Horse Riding Simulator



National seems to be quite successful with its horse riding simulators - not only because of the novelty and obvious health benefits, but also by cleverly making a sport with a strong celebrity image accessible - at least as a simulation - to the average Tokyo citizen in their cramped apartments. Simulated horse riding for imaginary social mobility?


Sunday, August 12, 2007

Axe effect



Axe has launched in Japan with this (hopefully intentionally) funny website.

Saturday, August 11, 2007

Premium Calpis



Calpis is the latest company to jump on the premium bandwagon with The Premium Calpis.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

SUICA Water



JR is beginning to realize the value of its SUICA penguin character as a promotion tool and has started using it in the adverts for its new From Aqua mineral water brand.

Monday, July 23, 2007

Yakult Thorpedo



Yakult's Thorpedo is a sports drink developed in cooperation with scientists at the University of Sydney.

Saturday, July 21, 2007

Office snacks



Manufacturer of traditional Japanese snacks Kanro has come up with this fun campaign presenting its products as the ideal snack when at work.

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

SUICA & Ecute



SUICA promotion at the Ecute shopping center inside Shinagawa station.

Sunday, July 15, 2007

Kirin



Kirin goes premium with this sparkling version of its tea drink Gogo no Kocha.

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Mobile SUICA Campaign



JR has launched a campaign to encourage customers to sign up for Mobile Suica, where the Suica card is integrated in their mobile phones.

Monday, July 02, 2007

Kirin & Uniqlo



Kirin has teamed up with discount clothes retailer Uniqlo to promote its Afternoon Tea brand with a campaign offering the chance to win an exclusive Uniqlo T-Shirt.

Friday, June 29, 2007

White Tea



White tea seems to be the latest trend among tea beverages - Coca Cola Japan's Venus White is the latest example.

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Suntory Premium Malts Black



Suntory has released a limited black version of its successful premium beer brand Premium Malts.

Monday, June 18, 2007

KitKat Yubari Melon



The latest Kitkat flavour is Yubari Melon - and a percentage of profits go to the famous melon producing (but recently bankrupt) town of Yubari.

Sunday, June 10, 2007

La Menta



Lotte has released La Menta - a mint for oyaji (old guys)!?

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Deo Natulle



Just in time for the hot and humid rainy season, Deonatulle has released this foot deodorant in a nice, faux-European design. Background and concept of the ad, however, are purely Japanese, with a tatami mat - the traditional flooring found in many homes and restaurants that requires taking off one's shoes - and the caption "Uh-oh, I have to take off my shoes..?".

Sunday, June 03, 2007

Frisk



Always quick to pick up on the latest trends, Frisk - which has been a huge hit in Japan with 2.4 boxes sold each second - is offering a case covered in Swarovski crystals as part of its latest campaign.

Saturday, June 02, 2007

Tully's goes Jazz



Jazz legend Ron Carter appears in Tully's adverts for its Barista's Special chilled RTD coffee.

Friday, June 01, 2007

The Oolong tea wars



Suntory has been so successful with its tea drink Black Oolong TTP which it claims suppresses the increase in serum triglycerides that osmaller manufacturers are trying to launch copycat products.

Thursday, May 24, 2007

Mega Teriyaki



Mc Donald's giant hamburger MegaMac has been so successful that the company will release a teriyaki version soon.

(Teriyaki is a cooking method where meat is broiled in a sweet soy sauce marinade.)

Sunday, May 20, 2007

Dolce



Haagen Dazs Japan has branched out into desserts and released a new brand with Dolce.

Sunday, May 13, 2007

Peach John goes retro



Lingerie mailorder Peach John goes retro with its latest catalogue featuring model Dita von Teese for a distinct 1940s atmosphere.

Sunday, May 06, 2007

NTT DoCoMo goes RED



NTT DoCoMo has joined the (Product) RED initiative and released the M702iS(RED) handset developed by Motorola. A percentage of the profits from sales will be donated to the global fight against AIDS.

Wednesday, May 02, 2007

The Hop



Sapporo has added another product for its premium Ebisu brand with The Hop.

Tuesday, May 01, 2007

Lawson Plus



The barriers between convenience stores and supermarkets are disappearing in Japan. Latest example is convenience store operator Lawson with its Lawson Plus stores, which offer fresh produce such as fruits and vegetables alongside the standard convenience store offerings.