"Is No Japan Over?" Pokemon Bread Gains Popularity, Japanese Travel and Beer Demand Also Recovering

Top Overseas Travel Destination for Koreans is Japan
Beer Import Volume Also Recovering... Character Marketing Popular
"Some Consumers Seem Skeptical About Japan Boycott"

With the easing of social distancing measures, demand for overseas travel has increased, leading to a rise in interest in traveling to Japan. The photo shows the international departure hall at Gimpo Airport in Gangseo-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] Japanese products, which had lost popularity for a while due to the boycott movement against Japanese goods, are regaining popularity. Some say that as more than three years have passed since the 'No Japan' movement began, the negative sentiment toward Japan has somewhat eased. Experts believe that some consumers have developed a skeptical view of the boycott movement against Japanese products.

With the lifting of social distancing measures, demand for overseas travel has exploded. According to a survey conducted by payment company VISA from May 27 to June 8, asking 1,000 adult men and women about overseas travel, 82% of respondents said they had "specific plans for overseas travel." Among them, 59% answered that they planned to travel abroad within a year.

In this survey, the most preferred overseas travel destination for Koreans was Japan. Among those who said they planned to travel abroad within a year, 20.5% answered that Japan was the top travel destination they were considering. Although the number of travelers to Japan sharply declined due to the No Japan movement and the spread of COVID-19, the preference for traveling to Japan seems to have increased along with the rise in overseas travel demand following the easing of social distancing.

Japanese beer, which was hard to find on mainstream shelves for a while, is also seeing increased sales again. According to the Korea Customs Service and others, the total import value of Japanese beer in Korea dropped by more than 90% over three years from 2018 during the No Japan period but has turned to a recovery trend this year. In the first quarter of this year, the import value of Japanese beer was $2.666 million (about 3.5 billion KRW), a 22.6% increase compared to the same period last year. Convenience store chains have also included Japanese beers such as Asahi, Kirin Ichiban, Sapporo, and Suntory in their imported beer promotional items since May.

The import value of Japanese beer in Korea, which sharply declined during the No Japan movement, has returned to a recovery trend in the first half of this year. The photo shows citizens selecting beer at a large supermarket in downtown Seoul. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

There has been analysis that the recent Pok?mon bread craze also indicates the fading of the No Japan movement. SPC Samlip’s Pok?mon bread includes stickers (ttibuttibussiil) from the Japanese manga series 'Pok?mon,' which sparked a collecting craze among the MZ generation (Millennials + Generation Z), leading to great popularity.

Some criticism has been raised against consumers enthusiastic about Japanese character products. It is regretted that the No Japan movement, which started after Japan’s export restrictions in 2019 that hurt Korean companies, is fading away after about three years. There are also concerns that every time Pok?mon bread is purchased, character usage fees are paid to the Japanese company 'The Pok?mon Company,' which holds the copyright, thus only increasing profits for Japanese companies.

In Japan, there have been evaluations that "the Pok?mon bread incident shows that No Japan is already a thing of the past." In April, the Japanese economic media 'Gendai Business' highlighted the popularity of Pok?mon bread and reported, "In Korea, the Japanese manga 'Jujutsu Kaisen' movie recently ranked number one in audience numbers immediately after its release," adding that "(Along with the popularity of Pok?mon bread) this proves the deep-rooted popularity of Japanese manga."

Character marketing using Japanese manga is not limited to this. Recently, Samyang Foods caused a stir by including stickers from the Japanese manga 'Crayon Shin-chan' with their new snack brand 'Churros Shin-chan.' This manga also generates profits for Japanese companies due to character usage fees.

Regarding this, Professor Lee Eun-hee of Inha University’s Department of Consumer Studies said, "It seems that some consumers think that the worsening relationship between Korea and Japan is a political and historical issue that cannot be resolved through a boycott movement," adding, "The No Japan movement lasted for three years, but some consumers may have felt skeptical about what effect this boycott actually had."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.