Japan Market Update - December 2006 Edition

Hi ,

With our holiday season approaching, the Japanese are busy making their own unique preparations for the season. Christmas was initially introduced to Japan with the arrival of the first Europeans in the 16th century and has become popular in recent decades. Since the major religions in Japan are Buddhism and Shinto, Christmas is more of a commercial event than in the United States.

Parents give presents to their children. Christmas trees are set up and lights are strung outside some homes. Christmas Eve is celebrated by eating a Christmas Cake, of which stores carry many versions. On Christmas day, many Japanese families eat Kentucky Fried Chicken, which they believe is a U.S. tradition. This time of year, stores also cater to those buying obligatory year-end presents-"Oseibo"-given to reciprocate favors granted during the year-usually within or between companies, to bosses, to teachers, and to family friends.

But the main holiday in Japan this season is New Years, for which preparations include a thorough cleaning of the home and the making of special New Year's Holiday foods called "Osechi Ryori" (now days many young people can just purchase these foods with little preparation needed). Typically, families and friends watch TV together on New Years Eve and then go to a shrine to offer prayers and pull "omikuji" - random fortunes written on strips of paper. The omikuji predicts the person's chances of his or her hopes coming true, generally for matters of health, fortune, life, etc. New Year's Day is a time to enjoy food, friendships, and family, starting by eating "Ozoni" soup, or mochi soup (glutenous rice cake soup), in the morning for good luck. New Year's is celebrated for several days, with food, visiting friends, and often a trip to the store to buy Fukubukuro or "Lucky Bags."

On the economic front, November was the ninth consecutive month for Japan's foreign exchange reserves to reach a new high, and the rise was the largest since March 2004, when Japan last intervened in the currency market to buy the U.S. dollar to stem the yen's appreciation, the Japan Times reported. The finance ministry attributed the increase mainly to the growing value of Japan's euro-denominated assets amid the rise of the European currency against the U.S. dollar. Meanwhile, Japan's bonds fell after a report from Credit Suisse Group showed investors have increased bets that the central bank will raise borrowing costs this month. We are currently seeing the yen trade in a range of 114-116. A stronger yen is positive for overseas companies catering to Japanese travelers. It appears like the yen will continue to strengthen unless there is some intervention. We will keep you informed about this important situation.

What this means for business opportunities in 2007: Understanding Japan's culture, traditions, market trends, and the consumer mindset will help unlock new ideas and opportunities for your business growth. PacRim and PRTech's role is to help you navigate through these cultural differences to find business success. With our Tokyo office fully staffed, we hope to offer you more opportunities to understand the market and build, expand, or reposition your company or organization in the Japanese marketplace.

We thank you for your support in 2006, and look forward to working with you in 2007. Enjoy this newsletter, and be sure to check out the 30 top hits of 2006 noted in our trend wrap-up.

Warmest regards,
Dave Erdman
derdman@pacrimmarketing.com

*Japan Market News
-----Travel: Tourism agency amps up "Fly and Drive"
-----Travel: JTB targets higher cruise sales
-----Business: Record-high likely for winter bonuses
-----Business: Tourists look past Waikiki construction
-----Business: Japan's booming kids' biz
-----Society: Japan's "it" girl epitomizes today's ideal female
-----Fashion: Boots and cropped pants the look of the season
-----Trends: Hitmakers of 2006
*Culture Corner
*Media of the Month
*Upcoming Magazine Deadlines
*Important Dates

TRAVEL: TOURISM AGENCY AMPS UP "FLY AND DRIVE"

Safety of utmost concern, as Fly and Drive prepares to be rolled out on the mainland in 2007
With a forecasted annual demand of 2 million Japanese travelers to peruse "Fly and Drive" - a program designed to allow tourists to fly into a destination and travel onward by rental car -- a subcommittee of the U.S.-Japan Tourism Export Initiatives is working on establishing a safety and security support system for safer road travel. Proposals have so far been submitted for California and five other western states, where driving conditions are considered "well prepared" for Japanese tourists. The committee has also requested rental car companies to consider Japanese-language car navigation equipment, license translation services, Japanese-speaking assistance, and 24-hour road-side service with an interpreter. Travel agencies have been asked to establish local support, pre-travel preparedness (such as virtual training), and the development of a safety kit. The committee plans to approach transportation authorities about the issuance of bilingual drivers licenses, as well as the AAA for the possibility of establishing Japanese-speaking help desks. Meanwhile the Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) is working on a logo and slogan for "Fly & Drive 2007," with plans for a designated web site to promote the program.
(Source: J-Wing Travel 11/6/06)
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TRAVEL: JTB TARGETS HIGHER CRUISE SALES

Agency increases "cruise advisors" to raise consumer awareness
Japanese travelers aren't cruising by the boatloads yet, but the numbers are definitely rising, according to Japan Travel Bureau, the country's largest travel agency. JTB's flagship branch, the Royal Road Ginza - known to sell some of the world's most extravagant tour packages to discerning travelers - sold 528 cruises between April and September this year, up 72 percent from last year. JTB expects to sell 500 more before the fiscal year is over, and forecasts 1,500 cruise customers by the following year. JTB plans to add 100 "cruise advisors," or cruise travel experts, to its current crew of 229, in the hope that more trained staff will lead to higher consumer awareness. While sales volume may seem low, cruise travel awareness in Japan is still in its infancy. In fact, JTB says cruises have the highest growth rate among the agency's product lineups. The most popular cruise destination is Europe - an 80 percent share - especially among the mature market. JTB hopes to promote Caribbean cruises to younger travelers. JATA is currently promoting international cruises to Japanese consumers, but points out that late bookings, complex cancellation procedures and fees, and low consumer awareness have hindered cruise product sales to date.
(Source: J-Wing Travel 11/6/06)
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BUSINESS: RECORD-HIGH LIKELY FOR WINTER BONUSES

Bonuses may mark the fourth straight year in rises
December looks like a good month for Japan's salaried workers. Winter bonuses at major Japanese companies will likely rise 1.97 percent from last year, to a record 868,932 yen (approx. $7,340), according to a survey by the Nihon Keizai business daily newspaper. The steady growth in winter bonus payments, helped by brisk corporate profits this year, is good news for recently-sluggish personal consumption that accounts for about 55 percent of Japan's economic activity. The forecasted bonus figure beats the previous record of 807,188 yen ($7,000) set almost a decade ago, in 1997, and would mark the fourth straight year in winter bonus rises. "This is 'economic recovery' people can see and feel," said a financial analyst at Yokohoma Bank, adding that merchants are expected to amp up sales wars for the rest of the year, in anticipation of higher consumer spending.
(Source: Reuters Japan 11/16/06)
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BUSINESS: TOURISTS LOOK PAST WAIKIKI CONSTRUCTION

Survey shows Japanese enjoy Hawaii despite traffic and higher prices
With a good chunk of Waikiki boarded up, hiding the unsightly construction underway, many wonder how the noise and dust are affecting tourists' perception of Hawaii. Surprisingly it's not so bad, according to a survey of 670 visitors from Japan, by Honolulu's Aloha Street magazine. A full 77 percent said they approve of renovating Waikiki as long as the Waikiki atmosphere as they know it, remains intact. A majority also said they didn't mind the noise, but worried about traffic congestion. As for what they look forward to post-renovation, most said they would like to see more supermarkets and casual restaurants in Waikiki, despite the common perception that Japanese travelers prefer high-brow dining.
(Sources: Pacific Business News 11/8/06)
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BUSINESS: JAPAN'S BOOMING KIDS' BIZ

Kids-only theme park, cafes, meet high demand
More Japanese adults are having fewer children these days, but the demand for safe, clean, and stimulating play environments are on a sharp rise. Tickets to enter Kidzania, an ocean-front "edutainment" park that opened in Tokyo in October, are sold out through the New Year's holidays. The expo-like theme park simulates a small town with about 50 pavilions set up as businesses (i.e. bank, post office, bakery, dentist, etc.). Children from age 2 to 12 can role-play each job, earn and deposit money, or spend the make-believe currency at other merchants. In order to ensure a safe and enriched experience for young minds, Kidzania admission is limited to children (accompanying adults must pay to enter, but cannot participate in the activities). Each Kidzania pavilion is sponsored by, and modeled after real-life corporations such as All Nippon Airways, Yamato Transportation, and candy maker Morinaga, and the entrance fee is inexpensive by Tokyo standards (2,000 to 3,000 yen, approx. $17 to $26, on weekends and holidays). The popularity of educational toys from Europe and the U.S. are also central to new kid-friendly cafes, such as Cafe Mont Blanc in Sakae City, and Kids Parlor Cafe in Yokohama. Both cafes have nursing rooms, diaper-changing facilities, and play areas stocked with books and educational toys - many of which are for sale -- all within arms' reach of coffee-sipping moms and dads. Business is brisk, both shop owners say, evident that parents desire casual, family-friendly environments where tots can play and interact, whilst giving parents an opportunity to relax and socialize.
(Source: Trendy Magazine November 2006; www.kidzania.jp)
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SOCIETY: JAPAN'S "IT" GIRL EPITOMIZES TODAY'S IDEAL FEMALE

With average talent and a generic look, new idol "Ebi-chan" sparks a marketing boom in 2006
The image of Japan's ideal female seems to change each year. In 2004, "funny chicks" ruled, with young, female comics making headlines and appearing in countless TV commercials. In 2005, following the Athens Olympics in 2004, the media channeled into the beauty of female athletes. But this year, such ideal traits as strength and individuality has given way to a more "generic" model of beauty, symbolized by 27-year-old model Yuri Ebihara, cum "Ebi-chan." Though statuesque, ultra-feminine, and gorgeous in her own right, the Shiseido cosmetics covergirl has actually become more popular for her mediocre acting ability and seemingly "shallow" persona. Why such an untalented celebrity has fueled such high volume in sales for the products she endorses is a mystery to many (Shiseido sales are up 10 percent, McDonald's new "shrimp burger" is up 16 percent, Fuji Film's FinePix digital camera sales doubled in 2006), but a TV marketing analyst explained that Ebi-chan possesses a "mannequin-like" quality that is probably unintimidating, and in turn comforting, to the average consumer. That said, Japanese women in their teens and 20s believe they can easily imitate her look by wearing the clothes and make-up she models in magazines and on TV. Ebi-chan also epitomizes Japan's growing fad over the last two years - the "mote" look - meaning "to attract" in Japanese, or to make the opposite sex fall for you, represented by everything she adorns, from her "mote" hair and "mote" clothes, to her "mote" perfume and even her "mote" bra. Moving forward, marketing experts predict Ebi-chan will remain Japan's "it" girl for another year, or at least until another beauty icon sparks the interest of Japan's notoriously finicky consumers.
(Source: Trendy Magazine December 2006; field report)
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FASHION: BOOTS AND CROPPED PANTS THE LOOK OF THE SEASON

Tall, short, skinny, scrunched - boots the obvious "must-have" in Japan
From toddlers to seniors and fashionistas of all ages in between, boots seem to be the desired footwear in Japan this winter. Boots are being paired with every clothing style imaginable - from skinny jeans and calf-length skirts to microminis and wide-leg pants. Feminine, skinny-heeled boots are popular with suits as well, while cowboy boots (called "western boots" in Japan), both flat and with chunky heels, are all the rage with skirts and jeans. The "equestrian" look - skinny jeans rolled up to the knees - with tight, leather boots are also very popular, inspired by the fashion of young, British royals (such as Prince Williams' girlfriend, Kate Middleton). But by far, the most popular bottoms style paired with knee-high boots is the cropped, tailored pants (reminiscent of Banana Republic styles). L.A. fashion and accessories such as over-sized hobo bags, long sweaters, and wide stripes seem largely popular as well, although the latest Hollywood style - the waist-cinching belt - doesn't seem to have caught on quite yet.
(Source: field report)
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TRENDS: HITMAKERS OF 2006

Annual hit list ranks the year's top 30 products, from gourmet tofu to The Da Vinci Code
(30) Recalo: a tofu and konnyaku hybrid, became Japan's favorite low-calorie food item.

(29) Collagen drinks: Vitamin C, amino acid, and collagen drinks, priced between $1 and $5 each, surpassed $60 million in sales.

(28) MDR-EX90SL: Ironically, Sony's newest high-tech earphones became a hit iPod accessory.

(27) Gout prevention: Middle-aged men heeded Health Ministry's obesity warning - called the "metabolic syndrome" -- in May, as an OTC supplement, Naicitol 85, reached $11 million in sales by October.

(26) Black Oolong Tea: Suntory's fat-burning tea tripled beverage maker's initial 6-month sale forecast of $43 million.

(25) One-seg: A combined 1.5 million digital TV antennae, known as "1 seg" (for 1 segment), are sold by Sony, Softbank, Toshiba, Logitec, and Buffalo Technology. Considered the next big milestone for mobile TV technology, the plug-in 1 seg antenna allows network TV broadcasts to be viewed on any USB-enabled device, such as cell phones and laptops.

(24) Eneloop: Environmental consciousness boosts sales of Eneloop's rechargeable batteries, which can be reused about 1,000 times.

(23) Kokka no Hinkaku: "The Dignity of a Nation," a socio-philosophical commentary by U.S.-educated mathematician Masahiko Fujiwara, became Japan's bestselling novel. A "pat on the back" for the often complex and idiosyncratic ways of conducting business in Japan, the book sparked controversy, especially in the wake of this year's Livedoor scandal.

(22) Onaka Walker: Lingerie maker Wacoal introduces a tummy-tucking girdle that claims to tighten hip muscles just by walking about 6,000 steps a day. Initially targeted for women in their 20s and 30s but a hit among the 40-60 age group, Wacoal sold a million girdles (over triple their expectations) in six months.

(21) Premium Beer: Sidelined by the popularity of shochu (potato liquor) and "the third beer" (non-malt beer), good old-fashioned brew made a comeback after three years of stagnant sales. Beverage makers Suntory, Sapporo, and Asahi introduced premium beers almost simultaneously, and all succeeded to increase sales by about 30 percent.

(20) Febreeze: Procter & Gamble took a dominant share of the room-deoderizing market with a compact, well-designed Febreeze room freshener.

(19) Ebi (shrimp) Filet-O: A shrimp-flavored "Filet-o-fish" burger by McDonald's Japan became an instant hit among young women - a previously tough market to penetrate for fast food chains - thanks to the endorsement of "it" girl Yuri Ebihara (McDonald's successfully spun the shrimp burger around Ebihara's nickname, "Ebi-chan").

(18) Soy Joy: Made with fruit and soy, these healthy energy bars rocked the snack market, its first year of sales topping $70 million. The maker, Otsuka Pharmaceutical, targeted the 30s age group, channeling its marketing efforts to taxis, select domestic routes on JAL, and one TV commercial - no other print ads.

(17) Ikea: The Swedish furniture maker struck a favorable chord with Japanese consumers, with its line of self-assembled, affordable home merchandise. Ikea's two stores (Chiba and Yokohama) still greet 10,000 to 20,000 customers daily. There's a month-long wait for furniture delivery to the home.

(16) Virus Security Zero: Long dominated by U.S.-based tech companies McAfee, Trend Micro and Symantec, Japan's Sourcenext took a fair share of the anti-virus software market with "Virus Security Zero," the nation's first unlimited anti-virus service that doesn't require an annual subscription.

(15) Home Loan Insurance: By popular demand of aging baby boomers, banks and mortgage companies introduced a series of home loan insurance designed to safeguard home owners from having to pay their mortgage in case of select illnesses, such as cancer, heart disease, and stroke.

(14) "True" hairbrush: An electric hairbrush designed to tame and straighten unruly hair reached a whopping million in sales volume during a 6-month period (10,000 brushes sold annually constitutes a "hit" in the hairbrush market). The revolutionary brush sold especially well during the early-summer rainy season.

(13) Dark Chocolate: High cacao-content chocolate increased in sales by 600 percent, thanks to reports that polyphenol, an antioxidant found in pure cacao, helps shed weight. Candy makers Meiji and Lotte dominated the chocolate market with a series of bitter, dark chocolate.

(12) O2 Supli: Oxygen in a can, the "O2 supplement" in gaseous form became an instant hit, sold exclusively in nationwide convenience stores. Extra oxygen isn't necessarily a nutritional supplement, but the popular use of oxygen by athletes, and the recent wave of swanky "oxygen bars" fueled the fire behind this hit item.

(11) Cell phone for kids: A breakthrough for the mobile phone industry, NTT DoCoMo's SA800i model became an instant hit with parents wanting to keep safe tabs on their kids on-the-go. Equipped with GPS and a manual, pull-string alarm for emergencies, target-specific TV commercials and word-of-mouth helped sell 220,000 of the easy-to-use flip phones within a three-month period.

(10) "Otokomae" tofu: A new premium tofu brand using Hokkaido soybeans and Okinawa sea water became a cultish hit for no good reason other than its retro-classic packaging and catchy name. While the full brand name, "Kaze ni fukarete tofu-ya Johnny" loosely translates to "any way the wind blows tofu-maker Johnny," the slightly non-sensical moniker might explain why a food product as simple as tofu stirred a frenzy among young consumers, selling an unprecedented 40,000 packages per day.

(9) "Look" brand household cleaner: The "Look" brand "Kirei no mist" (or "clean mist") by home and health product maker Lion Corp., rode P&G's Febreeze bandwagon by introducing a line of household cleaners that "prevent" dirt and odor. The attractive spray bottles - designed after European linen water containers - became an instant hit among housewives. Look created the cleaners for specific use in kitchens, bathrooms, and toilets (bath area and WC are typically separated in Japanese homes), tempting consumers to buy not just one, but all three types.

(8) The Da Vinci Code: Aided by a forceful promotion including high-profile visits by the film's cast, The Da Vinci Code reached the top-three highest-grossing foreign films in Japan (approx. $77 million), continuing to become one of Japan's biggest social phenomenon of 2006. Dan Brown's novel sold over 10 million copies, and spurred the publication of over 50 different "Da Vinci Code" companion books.

(7) EOS Kiss digital SLR camera: Following a three-year surge in camera sales, top companies Sony, Pentax, Nikon, Canon, and Panasonic battled the ensuing plateau of the compact digital camera market with reasonably-priced SLR (single lens reflex) cameras designed not for professionals, but for the average user. Price wars slashed the value of SLR cameras to under $1,000 across the board, with Canon's EOS Kiss Digital X emerging as the winner.

(6) Labre lactic acid drink: Yogurt-based drinks are naturally loaded with lactic acid, and has long been popular for supporting digestive health. But a discovery of naturally-occurring lactic acid in pickled "suzuke," a root vegetable native to the Kyoto area, prompted the production of Labre, a non-sugar, low-calorie health drink. Sales skyrocketed beyond expectation, with annual sales projected at $70 million.

(5) W-Zero 3 PHS phones: Of the nearly 900,000 PDA devices that sold to independent (non-business) customers in Japan this year, over half were the W-Zero 3 series by PHS (Personal Handyphone Service) company Willcom, Inc. The PHS network is used primarily in dense, urban areas such as Japan, Taiwan and China, but had been nearly queezed out of the Japanese mobile phone market by cell phone service providers such as NTT DoCoMo and KDDI. Willcom however rejuvenated the market with an unlimited calls plan for a flat monthly fee of 2,900 yen (approx. $25). Willcom, now under the control of The Carlyle Group (Hawaiian Telcom's new owner), plans to win back cell phone customers - namely big corporations -- with its ingeniously designed, web-friendly PDA handsets.

(4) mixi: SNS (Social Networking Service) reached new heights this year with the explosion of mixi, Japan's newest networking site. Second only to Yahoo! Japan for page view volume, mixi led the pack of major portals (Yahoo!, Rakuten, Google, and Infoseek) in terms of usage time; mixi users spent at least 30 minutes longer, for instance, than when using Yahoo. Mixi also became a new marketing machine, as businesses created their own profiles, listed as "communities," allowing users to log in and join the dialog. U.S.-based Newscorp.'s SNS site -- myspace.com -- entered the Japanese market in November, but is not expected to reach mixi's mainstream status any time soon.

(3) Shiseido Tsubaki shampoo: Shiseido went head-to-head with Japan's shampoo market leader, Unilever Japan, with its newest line: Tsubaki shampoo and conditioner. Although Tsubaki is purportedly formulated for Asian hair, the monumental ad campaign was what catapulted Shiseido to the market top spot. As if to snub Unilever's Lux brand's use of Hollywood actresses in their ads (most recently Kate Beckinsale and Natalie Portman), Shiseido frontlined 12 of Japan's hottest A-list celebrities in a simple yet striking ad, with the slogan, "Japanese women are beautiful." The print and TV ads instantly appealed to Japanese women, and Tsubaki became an instant hit.

(2) Keisha: Short for "kei jidosha," or light-weight vehicles, Japan's compact cars suddenly became hot stuff on the streets, due in some part to rising oil prices and sluggish consumer activity, but more so because of newly designed, well-equipped models by carmakers Honda, Suzuki, and Mitsubishi. By regulation, keisha must be less than 3.4 meters long and 1.48 meters wide (about 11' by 5'), and have less than 64 horse power. That's not a lot of muscle, but it didn't stop consumers from snapping these easy-to-park, zippy rides. One out of three cars on Japan's streets are slated to be keisha by the end of 2006.

(1) Ninendo DS Lite & brain teaser games: A backlash against high-graphics video games with intricate plots prompted gaming market leader Nintendo to get back to basics. In March, Nintendo launched DS Lite, an improved version of the DS model introduced in 2004, a handheld, touch-pad game device that accompanied a series of easy-to-use brain teaser games. Like the sudoku boom that struck the U.S. in recent years, brain teasers and right-brain-stimulating logic games have become highly popular in Japan, especially among adults. By offering an impressive array of kids' and adults' games for DS Lite, Nintendo dominated the gaming market by selling an astonishing10 million game machines by end-July.


(Sources: Trendy Magazine December 2006; www.mobilemediajapan.com; japanoid.com, Field Report)
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KARAKURI NINGYO - Japanese Mechanical Puppets


Imagine you are visiting a friend at their home, and you ask for something to drink. A few minutes later, out comes a little mechanical doll strolling towards you, holding out a hot cup of tea. You pick up the tea and the doll bows her head down and stops moving. After finishing off your tea, you set the tea cup back into the doll's hands, and she turns around and takes the cup away. Now imagine that all of this was taking place two hundred years ago in Japan. Would you be impressed?

The karakuri ningyo are Japanese mechanical puppets that were developed around the mid-Edo era about 200 years ago. The technology used to create these puppets was the same technology used in clock making. Clock making technology was introduced to Japan either by Jesuit missionaries from Europe, or from China in the 16th century. The karakuri ningyo were considered an art, using traditional Japanese woodwork and fabric design.

There are two types of karakuri ningyo. The Dashi-karakuri and the zashiki-karakuri. The Dashi-karakuri consists of a large float with three decks. The top deck is the performance stage, where two or three puppets will perform plays. The mid-deck is where the puppeteers hide. The lowest deck holds the musicians who play the flutes and drums that accompany the play. The Dashi floats are common during festivals.

The zashiki-karakuri are considered the most impressive karakuri because of the technology behind it. The zashiki-karakuri were designed for home entertainment. These dolls are controlled automatically by springs inside of its body. Feudal lords and merchants used these dolls to entertain guests.

The zashiki-karakuri are still being made using traditional methods to this day. Some of the different types of zashiki-karakuri that have been constructed includes an archer puppet that shoots an arrow at a target, a tumbler puppet that flips down a set of stairs, and even a puppet that writes a Japanese character using a brush and ink. Click here to see some zashiki-karakuri dolls in action, or look online for more video clips.

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Aloha Express

As Hawaii's repeat visitor market grows and with so many ways to market to Hawaii's Japanese visitors, smart advertising decisions are more important now than ever. Aloha Express is the only pre-arrival publication that continues to be in the forefront for targeting Hawaii's Japanese traveler repeater market.

As the only editorial-focused quarterly publication devoted exclusively to Hawaii, Aloha Express provides repeat travelers and Hawaii lovers, as well as Japanese media, tour, and travel influencers, with the most up-to-date news and information from on-site coverage in Hawaii.

The next issue hits book stores in February 2007!

Don't let this important opportunity pass you by. If you are interested in finding out more about advertising in this publication please contact Joy Ishiara at jishiara@pacrimmarketing.com

Click here for our Media Request Form or contact us.

Space Deadlines:

NOW! Aloha Express Quarterly - February 2007
NOW! Nouveau - Tumon Sands Plaza
NOW! Chikyu no Arukikata Guam Resort
1/1 Chikyu no Arukikata Saipan Guidebook

Material Deadlines:

NOW! Aloha Express Luxury Golf Hawaii
NOW! Aloha Express Hawaii Gokutabi (Freestyle Travel Hawaii)
NOW! Chikyu no Arukikata Excellent Hawaii Mook
NOW! Chikyu no Arukikata Barrier Free Hawaii
NOW! Aloha Express Quarterly - February 2007 Issue
1/1 Nouveau - Tumon Sands Plaza
1/1 Chikyu no Arukikata Guam Resort

It is not too late to call us (808-949-4592 or Toll Free 1-800-338-4502) to find out more about these upcoming media releases as we strive to find the best media available for you.

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Upcoming Holidays in Japan

12/23 Emperor's Birthday
12/24 Emperor's Birthday (Observed)
12/31 Oomisoka - New Year's Eve
1/01 Ganjitsu - New Year's Day
1/08 Seijin no Hi - Coming-of-Age Day

Click here to see all Japanese holidays for 2006.
Click here to see all US holidays for 2006.

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