THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
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In tune with the times

In tune with the times

Tokyo’s Shibuya district sheds its youth image as the professional crowd moves in

Long known as one of the fashion centres of Japan, particularly for young people, Tokyo’s Shibuya area is shedding its image as a “young person’s town,” as the growing number of mainly information technology companies and ongoing redevelopment bring in more and more working adults.
From the 1970s to the ’90s, Shibuya Koen-dori avenue was a centre of youth culture, characterised by the vogue “DC Brands” of Japanese designers and the Shibukaji (Shibuya casual) fashions worn by young people.
Now, however, department stores and commercial facilities have begun large-scale renovations with adult customers in mind. 
Marui City Shibuya, a fashion building facing the avenue, reopened as Shibuya Modi on November 19. 
Before its renovation, the building’s shops offered clothing mainly for young people, but it now targets adults of refined taste. 
Its stores include HMV, which features books and miscellaneous goods classified by themes such as “travel and cuisine”, a luxury karaoke store and a kimono speciality shop.
 “We’ll make the building a place that offers lifestyles that go beyond generations and is suitable for today’s Shibuya,” Marui Group president Hiroshi Aoi says,
Seibu department store’s Shibuya branch reopened its renovated fifth floor for women’s clothing in late August. 
The floor features an enhanced line-up of clothing aimed at executive women in their 40s and 50s, including high-quality one-piece dresses and jackets that cost from 100,000 yen (Bt30,300) to less than 200,000 yen. 
Sales during the three months after renovation increased by 50 per cent from a year earlier. 
Shibuya Parco, from which Koen-dori is believed to derive its name (Koen is park in Japanese, parco means park in Italian), has led youth culture since the 1970s with its innovative advertising. 
The building is also slated for renovation, to attract people of working age. 
Shibuya encompasses many schools and used to attract crowds of young people, while the number of companies in the area was relatively small. 
In the 1990s, an area called Shibuya Centre-gai attracted attention as a gathering place for many juvenile delinquents called “teamers” and young girls called “ganguro,” who sported tan makeup, bleached hair and platform shoes.
In response, Tokyu Corp, which operates railways that terminate at Shibuya Station, has promoted the construction of complex buildings to lure adults with high purchasing power to Shibuya.
In the 2000s, such complex buildings as Shibuya Mark City, Cerulean Tower and Shibuya Hikarie opened in quick succession, and many IT firms began to gather in Shibuya. 
According to a survey by Video Research, people younger than 30 accounted for 44.2 per cent of those who visited the area around Shibuya Station during a specific period in 2006, while those aged 30 or older accounted for 55.7 per cent. 
However, in 2014, those younger than 30 decreased to 39 per cent while those aged 30 or older increased to 60.9 per cent. 
A total of eight complex buildings, including offices and hotels, are scheduled to be opened mainly by Tokyu Group between 2018 and 2027. 
Many people are interested to see how Shibuya will become more adult-oriented in the future.
 
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