japan trend report

!May 2013

1. INFATUATION WITH FAT-ABSORBING BEVERAGES

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Diet Soda is no longer enough for the relentlessly health-conscious Japanese consumers. The latest trend in soft beverages is the Tokuho drinks that promise to block fat in the body.

FAT BLOCKING BEVERAGES

Consumption (Weeks)

Tokuho TeaAbdominal Fat

(cm2)

The drink contains an indigestible form of dextrin which restricts the body’s ability to absorb fat while eating. Studies suggest this can reduce the absorption of fat in the body and lower cholesterol levels.

BIG HITS KIRIN’S METS COLA, KAO’S HEALTHYA COFFEE, SUNTORY’S PEPSI SPECIAL

• Effectiveness on the human body is clearly proven • Absence of any safety issues (animal toxicity tests, confirmation of effects in the cases of excess intake, etc.) • Use of nutritionally appropriate ingredients (e.g. no excessive use of salt, etc.) • Guarantee of compatibility with product specifications by the time of consumption • Established quality control methods, such as specifications of products and ingredients, processes, and methods of analysis

!FOSHU refers to foods containing ingredient with functions for health and officially approved to claim its physiological effects on the human body. In order to sell a product as FOSHU, the claim must be approved by the Ministry of Health and Welfare.

FOSHU (Food for Specified Health Uses)

http://www.mhlw.go.jp/english/topics/foodsafety/fhc/02.html

FOSHU certification

2. DIVERSIFICATION OF CONVENIENCE STORES

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EVOLVING CONVENIENCE STORESTo better meet the needs of each neighborhood and its demography, convenience stores in Japan are customizing their look-and-feel, available products and services.

Standard Family Mart Standard LAWSON

FAMIMA!!!!Family Mart offers Famima!! for business districts that focus on catering to the needs of repeat customers.

NATURAL LAWSONLAWSON attempts to win the hearts of female consumers with its NATURAL LAWSON carrying organic foods, wines and cosmetics in the beautiful setting with downlighting.

LAWSON STORE 100!LAWSON’S 100 yen shops are not all about offering great deals. With single-serve packaged meats and fresh vegetables, they are targeting working singles who can’t shop during the operation hours of local grocery markets.

HAPPY LAWSON!With a rooftop rest area looking over a harbor, a playroom and wider aisles for strollers, Happy Lawson attracts families with small children.

3. BUZZING OVER NON-ALCOHOLIC COCKTAILS

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NON-ALCOHOL BUZZ!?

When Japan’s beer tycoon Asahi was launching Zero Cocktails (Zerokaku) in 2010, their marketing team strongly believed that their new product would revolutionize the non-alcoholic beverage category that was basically non-existent in Japan at the time. !To say they were not wrong does not justify the impact they brought upon the entire drinking scene in Japan. Zerokaku quickly became a mega-hit and other beverage brands quickly followed with their own version of non-alcohol cocktails - Gin Lime flavor, Mojito flavor, Spritzer flavor and so on. !The success of Zero-cocktails is not only credited to finding and exploiting a niche market but also to their R&D team with the cutting edge science that made it possible to create an alcohol-flavored non alcoholic cocktail. What really convinced consumers that calling “flavored soda” a cocktail is legitimate is the secret recipe they invented to add an alcohol-like smell and after-taste to the beverage. (It tastes so cocktail-like that you can almost feel the buzz after a can or two!) Tastes so satisfying, consumers emphatically bought the concept of non-alcoholic cocktails and the rest was history. !!!!

!These occasions seemed insignificant at first, but by bringing light to the presumably rare instances, consumers’ hidden desire for a new type of non-alcoholic drink surfaced.

For example, they may be a designated driver for the night, they might have an early meeting the next day, or maybe it is an office party where employees are expected to go back to work after a middle-of-the-day celebration. However there is always a social pressure to “be more fun” than ordering an orange juice at a party beyond their own hope to mingle.

What triggered Asahi’s Marketing team to invent a non-alcoholic cocktail?

During a consumer research, they saw that there were different occasions people sought

soft drinks or drinks with lower proof alcohol.

The break-through moment came when the Marketing team learned from the insight that when dining out at an upscale restaurant, the non-alcoholic options like iced tea, soda or juice actually do not go well with fine cuisine. Some were requesting the restaurants to pour cola in a cocktail glass! Non drinkers quietly but surely, were seeking more sociable options as well. !Asahi successfully turned these demands into marketable products. And they are now responsible for the whole new category that sold more than 40,450,000 cases in 2012. The non-alcoholic cocktail is expected to grow even more for 2013.

Furthermore, the standardization of non-alcoholic drinks in social settings pushed restaurants and bars to have the same if not more options for their patrons.

“What do you drink when you can’t drink?” - Asahi Research April 2010 n=788 M&F Age : 20 - 49

ICED TEA

SODA

GREEN TEA

NON-ALCOHOLIC BEER

WATER

JUICE

SPORTS DRINK

OTHER

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

DRINKERS NON-DRINKERS

Drinkers: unsweet alternativesNon-Drinkers: sweet, carbonated alternatives

= need a refreshing, carbonated, fruit-flavored alternative

The insight revealed that at least once or twice they’d found themselves ordering a non-alcoholic beer which had been the only option in these situations. !Asahi realized that the brands had been neglecting the fact that not everybody is a beer drinker to begin with.

NON-ALCOHOL BUZZ!?

NON ALCOHOLIC COCKTAILS & LIQUORSAsahi, Sapporo, Kirin, Suntory and others on the band wagon

NON-ALCOHOL COCKTAILS AT A BAR?Due to popular demand, restaurants and bars are now offering a wide variety of non alcoholic cocktails and beers on their menu. Many believe that not offering the non-alcoholic options could actually drive away their patrons and ultimately hurt their sales. !!Bars/Restaurants offering non-alcoholic beers 45.5 % Bars/Restaurants offering non-alcoholic cocktails 27.0 % !

Restaurants dedicating a full page of non-alcoholic beers and cocktails on their

menu.

THANK YOU!