The Great Shift — What Drove MCafe and Men-Chika Recruiters Out of Shibuya?

Street solicitors have disappeared from in front of Shibuya Station

In front of Shibuya Station, where people of all ages come and go, flyer handouts and solicitations—especially around the Hachiko area—were frequent, and you could be approached by quite a number of people just by walking a short distance. The most common were recruiters for underground male idols and men’s concept cafés. However, it is said that over the past few months their numbers have dropped dramatically.

According to what people say, they seem to have moved to the area in front of Shinjuku Station. The background to this is the revision of a Shibuya Ward ordinance, but there is apparently another reason as well.

Under the “Shibuya Ward Ordinance on the Prevention of Solicitation and Similar Acts in Public Places,” which was revised and enforced in April 2025, those who engage in scouting or solicitation can be fined 50,000 yen and have their names and business names made public. When the Shibuya Ward Safety Measures Division was asked about the ordinance, it appeared to have had a considerable effect in the area around the station.

“Under the ward’s ordinance, handing out flyers itself is not a problem, but it is necessary to obtain a road-use permit from the police. We were aware that there had been forceful solicitations around Shibuya Station. With the revision of the ordinance, nuisance behavior around the station has disappeared, and so far there have been no cases of people being cited. As for whether those engaging in such nuisance behavior have flowed from Shibuya Ward to Shinjuku Ward, there has been no such discussion between the ward offices at this point,”
said the Shibuya Ward Safety Measures Division.

Are the solicitors actually moving from Shibuya to Shinjuku? When we went to the east exit of Shinjuku, from evening into night there were people handing out flyers and soliciting for men’s concept cafés and underground male idols, saying things like, “We have this kind of event—are you interested?” and “We’re idols….” Speaking to one of them, who seemed to be active as a so-called underground male idol, he told us the real reason for their withdrawal from Shibuya.

“In Shibuya the ordinance has become stricter since around last year, so we don’t hand out flyers there. We’re active three to four days a week, but since we can’t promote ourselves in Shibuya, we made Shinjuku our base of operations. Also, right now in Shinjuku more young women stop and listen compared to Shibuya. Shibuya has a higher average age and gives a stronger impression of being an adult-oriented area. In fact, since moving our base, our attendance has improved.”

It’s true they moved because the regulations in Shibuya became stricter, but it seems their solicitation is going better in Shinjuku. Another young man handing out flyers for an underground male idol group also said that it is easier to attract customers in Shinjuku.

“Not necessarily illegal”

“Most of the people I approach are students. Adult women, comparatively speaking, have been to host clubs and have also experienced other men’s concept cafés and underground male idol venues, so they can tell whether a place is good or not. If they think, ‘That place isn’t great,’ it won’t lead to the next visit.

High school girls, on the other hand, can’t get into host clubs, and they have less experience with men’s concept cafés or underground idols. It’s easier to approach women who are interested in nightlife but don’t quite have the courage to go, so we’re more successful at recruiting than in Shibuya. Also, we can blend in with scouts and other underground idol recruiters, so we don’t stand out in a bad way.”

He also said that a recent method is to have people register on social media on the spot.

“There’s a LINE registration on the flyers we hand out. If they sign up for that, even if we can’t recruit them on the spot we can contact them later all at once, and it’s also fine if they register right there. Some people don’t take flyers because they become trash, but with social media they’ll casually sign up. Taking someone from the street to the shop is what’s considered a violation, but if we exchange contact information and negotiate from there, we don’t think it counts as solicitation.”

It appears they do not obtain permits to use the roads. Regarding that point, they said “It’s a hassle to get permission” and “Everyone does it without permission,” and as for targeting high school students, they claimed, “Men’s concept cafés and underground idol venues don’t serve alcohol to minors, so it should be fine.”

When we contacted the Shinjuku Ward Crisis Management Division, they responded, “Since it is not an illegal act, we cannot prohibit it.”

“Under Shinjuku Ward ordinances, if someone engages in solicitation—such as luring customers into a shop or negotiating prices—under the pretense of handing out flyers, it is of course a violation. However, handing out flyers or tissues itself is not prohibited, so it cannot be said to be illegal across the board.”

In the street solicitations that have moved from Shibuya to Shinjuku, there are still malicious cases where people follow a few meters behind or block someone’s path while calling out to them. Many recruiters seem to avoid forceful approaches out of fear of crackdowns, but if their nuisance behavior becomes too excessive, they may end up being driven out of Shinjuku as well.

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