Sometimes, the English language just doesn’t cut it. While the Oxford Dictionaries’ Word of the Year was in fact not a word, but rather the “Face with Tears of Joy” emjoi (also known as the LOL or the laughing emoji), and the Merriam Webster word of the year was also an unconventional choice, with the suffix “-ism” taking top spot, over in Japan, the joint word of the year described a new phenomenon that we are likely to be seeing much more of in 2016.

 

The joint top Japanese word for 2015 was “bakugai,” which means "explosive buying by Chinese tourists." The phrase was chosen by the Jiyukokuminsha publishing house from a list of 50 words and phrases, with the top 10 designed to reflect what Japanese society looks like. (The other top phrase was “toripuru suri,” which means “Triple Three” achievements in baseball...)

 

According to the South China Morning Post¸ Japan was the most popular destination for Chinese tourists in 2015, with 2.75 million Chinese arriving in the January-to-July period, up from 1.29 million in the same period in 2014.

A report released earlier this year by Bain & Company – “Worldwide Luxury Markets Monitor 2015 Spring Update" – revealed that Chinese consumers make up more than 30 percent of global luxury spending and are largely responsible for the shift from local consumption to touristic spending, which now accounts for about 50 percent of all luxury spending.

 

While Chinese tourists – and potential luxury buyers – are heading to Japan in record numbers, (Bain puts the Chinese spend in Japan at 20 percent of total sales) they are also flooding other destinations.

 

In the UK, for example, retail analysts said wealthy tourists from China and the Middle East were spending four or five times as much as their British counterparts on items including jewelry, watches and designer handbags, reported The Guardian, a phenomenon that is not going unnoticed.

 

According to The Guardian, some retailers have been hiring Mandarin speakers and tailoring their goods to meet the growing demand from globetrotting Chinese buyers.  

 

“We are seeing more Chinese people here than ever before, which is good news for our retailers, and they are spending a healthy amount of money, which is good for our stores,” said Jace Tyrrell, chief executive of the New West End Company, which represents retailers in and around London’s popular Oxford Street.  

 

“We have seen the rise of the Chinese in the last couple of years. They are now our third largest shopper – international – and they will be number one in a couple of years.”

 

However, the good news for Japan and the UK did not reach Hong Kong, once the main shopping destination for Chinese consumers. A recent article in The Wall Street Journal said that the number of Chinese tourists had slowed a significant 15.4 percent in November 2015 compared to 2014. In addition, retail sales in Hong Kong have fallen for eight straight months on lower tourist spending, with total retail sales 2.7-percent lower year-over-year for the first 10 months of 2015.

 

So, as we head into the New Year, there’s every possibility that bakugai could become as well known as other Japanese words, such as tycoon, shogun and, yes, emoji.

 

Have a fabulous weekend and a very healthy and happy New Year!