businesses offer silent services for people who are used to being alone

Hairdressers, restaurants, stores… companies offer silent services to the Japanese, more and more of whom live alone and prefer not to interact too much with others.

More and more people live alone in Japan. So, in order not to change their habits, businesses now offer to serve their customers in complete silence. You can get your hair cut, go shopping or have dinner without ever saying a single word. These companies note that more and more Japanese people live alone and prefer not to interact too much with others. In its latest major study of living conditions in the country, the Ministry of Health found that 34% of households in the country now consist of a single person. That’s still 18 million people. This figure continues to increase. It has even almost doubled compared to the beginning of the 2000s. There are many elderly people who have divorced or lost their partner, they represent 46% of single people. But there are also millions of working adults who live alone all year round.

Everyone can benefit from the silent services offered by businesses, single people as well as couples or families. But professionals explain that there is a real demand for less social interaction. Hairdressers in Tokyo now offer to choose the exchange method that suits you when you make an appointment. This is the case, for example, in the Hait Works Credo lounge. Before starting, you tell your hairdresser if you want a normal conversation, a limited discussion or no exchange. Almost six out of 10 customers choose to say little or nothing at all.

Stores are also adopting this system. Clothing chain Urban Research has begun introducing two types of shopping bags into its stores. There's the colorless transparent for a normal experience, where salespeople can offer to help, and there's the blue transparent for customers who don't want to be approached while on the shelves. The brand estimates that 10% of consumers now choose the blue bag, because interaction with employees is experienced as stressful.

You can also dine or drink without ever interacting with anyone. This is very common now in Japan where many people eat alone at lunchtime and in the evening. It's not at all frowned upon in society. At Kura Sushi, a large chain of sushi restaurants, you place your order with your smartphone using a QR code. The sushi arrives on a small conveyor belt, which passes between the tables. Then you pay without ever having interacted with a human. In Osaka, there is now even a cafe where silence is obligatory. As soon as you enter, you are handed a card that says not to speak at all. And if you really need to communicate, you have to use brochures with small drawings.