JAPAN. If you are still targeting the so-called Office Ladies (OL) segment, then you are out of the loop. That’s the latest word from Japan Travel Bureau (JTB) Foundation managing director Hidetoshi Kobayashi.
At the JATA World Tourism Congress 2003 in Yokohama last week, Kobayashi said there has been a major shift in travel over the past few years. “Some of you may still believe that this [Office Ladies] is the dominant segment in the market. However, it is the women in their 50s and over who have led the travel market since the late 1990s.”
Kobayashi refers to travelling consumers in their 50s and over as “Stock Consumers” because they are not susceptible to economic influences and can travel whenever they want to as they have enough time and money.
He also identifies “Flow Consumers,” because they are dependent on their salary, and their travel patterns are affected more by the economy than safety issues.
Stock Consumers, however, are more prone to cancelling their trips if there is any heightened anxiety about travel safety, he explained. They actually lead the Japanese outbound market and account for between 30% and 40% of the entire market.
Based on the structure of the Japanese population, the Stock Consumer market is expected to rise in the future, a fact that could point to a “healthy and promising” future.
But this group will remain very sensitive to safety and security concerns. The drop in departures from Japan during the SARS outbreak and the Iraq War was largely the result of Stock Consumers pulling back on their travel plans. And Stock Consumers are the ones to ignite the recovery of the Japanese market, according to JTB.
Female travellers in their 30s are also considered Stock Consumers due to changes in the characteristics of the modern Japanese family.
Kobayashi cited the fact that an increasing number of single working women in their 30s live with their parents and the trend that Japanese women are choosing marriage later in life serve as contributing factors to this age group having more income to spend on items such as travel.
“They travel more thanks to the affluence and generosity of their parents in their 60s. This feature of the modern Japanese family also explains why three-generation trips, as well as mother-daughter trips, have become more popular in recent years.”
Stock Consumers are leading today’s market; they take trips as an extension of their interests or hobbies. For example Toyota Cars has recently launched a new sporty model, aimed at the same “active senior” market.
“Instead of considering Japan as a mass market, think of it as having many niche markets constituting the current outbound market. Products aimed at the mass market are no longer attractive to anybody,” said Kobayashi.
See also TJI online for more expert marketing data or to order the Japan Travel Blue Book 2002/2003
