Cool Japan: Glasses

■ Cool Japan: Glasses

NHK Cool Japan: "Glasses" edition.

There are 60 million people who wear glasses in Japan .

One in two people wears glasses.

In the past, they were seen as being serious, studious, and uncool, but recently they have become a fashionable item and are at the forefront of fashion.

"I like glasses"

In the old days of foreign movies and manga, Japanese people were typically depicted wearing glasses with protruding teeth and a camera in the hands, but these days they wear them as a cool fashion statement.

In the past, there were many manga in which girls were depicted as cute without their glasses, but now the pattern has changed to girls who wear glasses being popular.

I realized that for Japanese people, who tend to have flat faces and shallow features, this is a way to completely change the impression of their face.

In Japan, there are a lot of restrictions like uniforms and black hair, but glasses are a prop that allows you to easily fulfill your desire to transform yourself.

"Quick Glasses Shop"

Cheap and fast is the golden rule of business in Japan.

Chains like this have had a huge impact on eyewear culture.

Not only are they fast, but they are also inexpensive, which is probably why more and more people are having multiple pairs of stylish glasses in different colors or with a bit of adventure, and using them for different purposes.

Glasses used to be expensive, and people would wear the same glasses every day.

It has become cheaper. It has become a consumable item.

This is probably what created today's glasses culture.

"Sabae, Fukui Prefecture"

My glasses are also from Sabae. They are light, durable, and go well with Japanese clothing.

I have three identical pairs of glasses.

Since they are made by craftsmen, I was worried about when they would run out.

Italian glasses are sold based on their design, but Sabae in Japan's strength is technology.

The work is divided into detailed divisions of labor and each worker focuses on one skill.

When such factories and craftsmen gather in one city, it becomes a brand.

This is the same as Nishijin in Kyoto.

While there are many cheap products on the market, brand strategies based on these technologies are still viable.

Vision-correcting devices, something that people would rather not have, have become fashionable and have become something that people don't really need but still want to wear. What an incredible innovation.