Monday, February 14, 2005

Valentine's Day


Posted by Hello

Happy Valentine's Day!

Opposite from many other countries, it's the women who give men
chocolates (or other gifts) on Valentine's Day in Japan. Mary's
Chocolate Company, among others, is said to have introduced
Valentine's Day in Japan. What a great marketing strategy that was!

Of course women give gifts to men they actually like, but a lot of the
chocolates given are "obligatory-gift chocolates" (giri-choco in
Japanese.) This "giri-choco" might be given to every male co-worker
in a woman’s work place, which can cost a bundle for some.

It's not like the women have it that bad because Japanese chocolate
companies created another great holiday called "White Day." On this
day (March 14th) women who gave chocolate to men usually receive a
gift back. On top of that, in many cases these gifts are better than
what was given.

A better explanation about Valentine's Day and White Day can be found here. For a detailed story of Valentine's & White Day in Japan take a look at this link

Robert

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