Oshi-Katsu Market Soars to 820 Billion Yen: Japan’s Economic Game Changer?

Marketing firm Ridel (Minato Ward, Tokyo) conducted an online survey with 159 people last autumn. According to the results, 28.9% of respondents spent an average of 10,000 to 30,000 yen per month, and 2.5% spent over 100,000 yen. Some even reported spending over 500,000 yen on “oshi katsu” (supporting a favorite personality or hobby).

Additionally, Favosia (Minato Ward), which operates a female-exclusive “oshi katsu” app, conducted a survey with 183 users at the end of last year. The average amount spent in 2024 was about 400,000 yen. Of this, about 180,000 yen was spent on live events and related expenses such as ticket fees, travel, accommodation, hair, makeup, and participation costs. About 170,000 yen was spent on merchandise, with over 25% of that being transactions between otaku (fans) on flea market sites and SNS platforms.

An online store and media operator Oshicoco (Shibuya Ward) surveyed 23,069 people in January this year. Of the respondents, 16.7% said they were involved in “oshi katsu.” This translates to an estimated 13.84 million people engaging in “oshi katsu” nationwide. Compared to last year’s survey, there was an increase in the percentage of women in their early 30s, rising by 8.2 points to 30.4%.

In the Oshicoco survey, the annual expenditure on “oshi katsu” was about 250,000 yen. From this data, it is estimated that the total national expenditure on “oshi katsu” for the year is about 3.5 trillion yen.

However, since these surveys likely target people with a strong otaku inclination, the population estimates and numbers should be taken as rough references.

The key to Japan’s revival: “OSHI”!

On social media, the coined term “OSHI” has emerged and is gaining global recognition. Additionally, foreign investment funds are beginning to consider it as one of their investment targets.

Sakai from Mizuho Research & Technologies points out that Japan, with its strong content industries such as anime, may be able to connect “OSHI” culture with inbound tourism more effectively.

“While exports like automobiles have started to slow down due to the weaker yen, inbound tourism will eventually plateau. On the other hand, the content business is a sector where Japan has strength and can generate revenue,” he says.

During this past Lunar New Year, the city of Hakodate, featured in a movie, became a hotspot for pilgrimage tourism, reportedly experiencing overtourism.

“People who are passionate about something will go anywhere, even from distant places, to recreate scenes from their favorite dramas.”

Those involved in “OSHI” activities do not mind the costs or time spent, and do not concern themselves with typical cost-efficiency metrics like cost-performance or time-performance.

Sakai also states, “Those who get hooked, get completely immersed. ‘OSHI’ activities make demand visible and bring it to the surface.”

“Recently, there have been online concerts and fan meetings. The digital age makes it possible to host concerts on a scale that would otherwise be impossible.”

“OSHI” activities are not only flourishing domestically but may also capture inbound demand from overseas. With digitalization, its scale could expand even further. How much “OSHI” culture will grow in the future remains an exciting question.