TOKYO —

While young people call them flea markets and older folk refer to them as “nomi no ichi,” outdoor markets selling secondhand goods are buoyant and popular in Japan.

Young and old flock to bazaars on weekends to sell secondhand articles or to look for lucky finds mixed in with the wares on display.

A 35-year-old housewife from Tokyo’s Adachi Ward visited the flea market near JR Shinagawa Station in mid-January to look for brand-name clothing for her 1-year-old son. She said she often visits the market but sets a budget of 1,000 yen per item.

She said she has exceeded her budget in the past when haggling with a seller over the price of a special item.

“The knack for getting the things you want is to go around the place one more time because almost all the stalls lower prices in the afternoon,” she said smiling.

A 41-year-old man from Shinagawa Ward spread out about 100 items of secondhand clothing, including sweaters and jeans.

“Six of us, including my wife and friends, came here to sell items we think it would be ‘mottainai’ to throw away just because we don’t wear them anymore,” the company employee said. “Mottainai” is a Japanese word that encapsulates the three R’s of reduce, reuse and recycle.

It was his second time at the market and he paid 3,000 yen for the lot.

Although he has not fallen into the red so far, he said he is not striving to make money. “It’s nice to negotiate with customers over prices and to make casual conversation with them.”

Suguru Shinomiya, who is a member of a citizens group that encourages recycling and hosts flea markets, said he believes the spread of the Internet is behind the popularity of “nomi no ichi.”

He said that previously information on when flea markets would be held was circulated using flyers handed out at the markets, depriving many people of the chance to participate either as sellers or buyers.

But now, Shinomiya said, anyone “can find out right away when and where a flea market will be held by searching on the Internet.”

He also advised potential buyers to stay on the safe side by getting the telephone numbers and addresses of sellers from market promoters if they need to contact sellers because of problems with the goods they have bought.

The charm of flea markets unlike auctions on the Net, he said, is that buyers can actually touch the goods on sale, though they are mainly secondhand items. Purchasers should check carefully whether buttons are missing on clothing and if electrical appliances actually work, he added.

Buyers are also reminded to exercise care as they cannot blame market sponsors if they are tricked into buying fake brand goods.

© 2008 Kyodo News. All rights reserved. No reproduction or republication without written permission.

3 Comments

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  Zybster at 01:06 AM JST - 28th March

  Mottainai - how about saying "it would be a waste to throw it away" instead of some meaningless "reduce, reuse and recycle"?

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  tresbien at 04:54 AM JST - 28th March

  Bad news... Japanese people are getting poor...

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  Loki520 at 08:38 AM JST - 29th March

  They need to have a swap meet, like the one in Hawaii at Aloha Stadium...

  And it doesn't mean they are getting poor. It means that some in the lower income brackets, want to try and manage their money a bit better. 2nd clothes aren't so bad for some. I certainly won't buy them, but apparently some will.

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