Freelance Announcer Aika Kanda: “Wait, That Wasn’t Poop!?”

“Reasons” We Can All Relate To

Whenever I travel abroad, I always make a point of visiting discount stores that are popular with locals. In the U.S., that means places like “TJ Maxx” or “Marshalls.” In Canada, it’s “WINNERS.” In Europe, it’s “TK Maxx,” and so on. Actually, all of these stores are operated by the same American company, but the merchandise they carry varies widely.The selection ranges from clothing, of course, to makeup, kitchenware, furniture, and even pet supplies—and 90% off is the norm. It’s a better deal than going to an outlet mall.

As for clothing, they’re all well-known brands that are familiar even in Japan. However, there’s always a “reason” for the discount—such as being out of season, last season’s styles, missing buttons, missing accessories, or torn seams.It’s like a treasure hunt—and a lot of fun—to find something you like among the massive hangers full of clothes, carefully examining each item and thinking, “This doesn’t bother me,” or “I can fix this!” before making a purchase.

That said, when it comes to the “reasons” for the discounts, stains are particularly shocking—and ballpoint pen ink is just the tip of the iceberg. There’s foundation—presumably left behind during a fitting—not just on the neckline, but also on the sleeves and the front of the garment.There are also marks where someone stepped on them with shoes or a shopping cart. And the most striking of all is the blood smeared thickly on the inside of the crotch of a pair of pants. It’s probably that time of the month for women.

I’ve never seen stains like that in Japan. But at discount stores overseas, I’m bound to come across them at least once during my travels. There have been countless times when I’ve thought, “I want these pants ♡,” only to spot the stain just as I was about to try them on in the fitting room—and then, exclaiming, “Ugh!! Not again!”—I’ve angrily given up on buying them.

Even so, there were times when I wanted them so badly that I thought, “Maybe I can get it cleaned after I get back home,” so I showed the spot to the salesperson and tried to negotiate a further discount by saying, “More discount!” But they refused, and I was completely taken aback—thinking, “Are they really going to keep selling them at that price?!”

Then, just the other day, I went to a popular clothing store in Aoyama, Tokyo. I found a pair of mint green suede pants—a rare find for genuine leather items. “So cute!!” I thought, and headed straight for the fitting room.“I’ve never seen pants like these before ♡ I hope they fit♪” I thought, my heart racing with excitement. But just as I lifted my right leg to put them on, I let out a gasp: “Whoa!”

There it was—that stain. A bloodstain on the inside of the crotch. “We’re in Japan, aren’t we!?” I thought, shocked. “Have our country’s fitting room manners finally started to go downhill?” My face twisted with frustration and anger.

Aika’s Deduction

I took another close, careful look at that area. Two brown, dried stains—about 5 cm long and 1 cm wide—were lined up vertically along her butt crack, spaced about 1 cm apart. Had she been wearing a thong during her period?With Japanese menstrual underwear, even if it were stained, the stain would usually be a little further out. Plus, among all the stains I’d seen so far, this one was an unusually deep brown. (“Wearing a thong, and an unusually deep brown…”), my brain started beeping away.“Could this be poop left behind by a foreign tourist who tried this on!?” I wondered.

In a way, I felt like I’d seen something unusual, which calmed me down a bit, and I stepped out of the fitting room. A male sales clerk was waiting for me. “A guy, huh?” I hesitated for a moment, but then said, “I’m sorry. I really like these, but there’s a stain on the inside of the crotch, so I’ll pass.”He exclaimed, “Huh?!” in surprise. The clerk turned the pants inside out, stared at them for a while, and then, looking utterly incredulous, said, “What on earth is this…?” as he scratched at the stain with his fingernail. I thought to myself, (Huh?!)That stain—it might be poop, you know? If you scratch at it like that, poop’s going to get under your fingernails! Even if it’s not poop, it’s blood! That’s gross!!

Should I have told the male clerk what that stain actually was? I’m aware that I’m a middle-aged woman, but I was just too embarrassed to tell a man it might be menstrual blood or poop. Still, I couldn’t just leave the store without saying anything—I had to think about the next customer who would try on those pants.I’m sorry, clerk from that time. I’ll buy something the next time I visit the store. Please forgive me.

Aika Kanda / Born in 1980 in Kanagawa Prefecture.After graduating from the Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science, at Gakushuin University, she joined NHK as an announcer in 2003. She left NHK in 2012 to become a freelance announcer. Since then, she has been active primarily in variety shows and currently appears regularly as the main MC on the daytime series “Pokapoka” (Fuji TV network).

★Her first book , *Where Does the ‘Royal Road’ Lead? * , a compilation of this series , is now on sale to great acclaim!

From the July 10, 2026 issue of *FRIDAY*