Embracing Japanese pop culture

By Laura Tiffany

updated 12:46 p.m. ET May 11, 2008

Once one starts listing the examples of Japanese culture infiltrating the United States, it's pretty hard to stop. One of the most-anticipated summer movies, "Speed Racer," is based on a '60s anime. Leonardo DiCaprio, James Cameron and M. Night Shyamalan are all attached to anime-based projects.

Anime peppers cable channels like IFC, Spike and, of course, Cartoon Network, whose Toonami block features Japanese animation every Saturday night. Manga fills racks upon racks at Borders and Barnes and Noble. Japanese aesthetic has found its way into mainstream department stores, helped along by pop star Gwen Stefani's Harajuku Lovers line of clothing and accessories, Le Sport Sac bags featuring Tokidoki designs (created by an Italian artist obsessed with Japan), and famed artist Takashi Murakami's bags for Louis Vuitton.

Cosplay and anime conventions don't just happen in hot spots like Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York, but all over the country. The nation's first J-Pop mall is in the works in San Francisco, created by Japanese film distributor Viz Pictures, and will feature a Japanese-only film theater, bookstore, café and fashion boutiques with the U.S.'s first boutique for Gothic Lolita fashion. Names once foreign to Americans — Pokèmon, Tamagotchi and Totorro — have become beloved household brands.

Yet the import market for Japanese pop culture is still in its infancy, and oftentimes it's entrepreneurs who are bringing the best items here to sell to early adopting arbiters of cool, whether they are 7-year-olds clamoring for Naruto or hip 20-somethings sporting Domo-kun t-shirts.

The 'cuteness' factor
The proliferation of Japanese culture first struck Roland Kelts when he noticed a giant Pikachu floating merrily alongside Snoopy in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.

"That was just the tip of the iceberg," says Kelts, a University of Tokyo professor and author of "Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S." "I mean, [look at] the fact that sushi is available in mainstream supermarkets around the country; the fact that Japanese style, design and architecture are appearing in major cities around the country; [and] the popularity of manga and anime in bookstores and Wal-Mart and Target."

One major reason so much Japanese culture takes root here is kawaii — the ultra cute design aesthetic that permeates much of manga, anime, Japanese advertising and even household products.

"The best definition I've heard of kawaii is you look at something that's kawaii and it's not just cute," Kelts says. "It's not just something you love. It's something you want to protect."

"What I think is most appealing about Japanese culture is its amazing mixture of cuteness, coolness and playfulness," says Seiji Horibuchi, president and CEO of VIZ Pictures. "Playfulness can allow us to have generous curiosity, to cross borders between cultures, beliefs, genders, ages and so on. I think that's the true beauty of Japanese culture."

FredFlare.com is deep in the business of selling products that make customers go "awww!" so Japanese products are a natural fit.

"We're really big on cute," says Keith Carollo, who began the e-commerce site with Chris Bick in 1998. "I think [Japanese manufacturers] just have this talent for bringing products to life."

Currently, FredFlare carries a line of Japanese kitchen items such as a spatula that looks like a frog and a skillet with a panda face on it. The site also sells accessories, Japanese craft books, and other kitschy Japanese items like a squirrel-shaped lint roller. The team hasn't yet been to Japan to source products but has had luck with trade shows, scouring the Web, and being approached directly by suppliers.

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