Learners of Japanese will soon come across this word kawaii. It means cute and symbolizes how adding an adorable element can turn ordinary products into powerful kaching! generators.

Japanese products typically feature animals on their surfaces. I am not sure whether they are targeted at kids primarily or if it is the case that Japan is basically a nation of kidults. One thing’s for sure: they are often too cute to resist. My wife bought the box of Christmas candy for my son because he found it kawaii. Cat lovers will have a field day here because they will be captivated by all the kawaii cat-themed items. Remember to have a firm grip on your wallet and keep a tight budget. After some time, I developed an immunity towards these kawaii products though. I don’t want to get suckered into crass consumerism so easily. So even though these beer cans with train designs beckoned invitingly to me, I refused to succumb to my materialistic impulses. The notion of kawaii is so prevalent that even cities have cute mascots. My wife’s hometown, Yatsushiro in Kumamoto Prefecture, launched a mascot called Chikuwan recently. Don’t look down on it. It won first prize in a nationwide mascot competition and is expected to bring in much-needed tourist dollars to the city. Thus ends my reporting of how and why kawaii is important in Japanese design. Thank you for reading.