No.24   March 1, 2001   Changing Consumption Patterns and New Lifestyles in the 21st Century   Hiroyuki NITTO and Junichi SHIOZAKI        Nomura Research Institute carried out large-scale surveys to record and analyze the views of Japanese people in 1997 and 2000. According to the results of these Surveys of 10,000 Consumers, Japanese appear to be losing confidence in existing organizations and institutions and are moving towards what might be called a self-protective attitude in their lives in the face of rapid social changes, such as the aging of society and a fall in the birth rate, internationalization, and uncertain economic prospects.    Furthermore, because of the significant changes in the communications environment accompanying the wide-scale spread of portable phones and Internet technologies, social groupings are coming in for increasing diversification. People are tending to look around more at what are their neighbors and colleagues are thinking and doing, and this new attitude is exerting a significant influence on consumer behavior as a whole.    In the future the concept of community marketing will become important as a new marketing strategy for businesses, as it takes advantage of the changing communication formats among consumers, the relations between companies and consumers, and the ways in which information is exchanged in general. Contents I Rapid Changes in the Overall Social Environment 1 Fewer Children to Support the Society of the Future 2 Improvement in Networks Including the Internet 3 Increased International Experience and Lifestyles Meeting Global Standards 4 Life Design Without the Expectations of Continuing Economic Growth 5 Regional Penetration of Urban Lifestyles II Retreat Towards Self-Protection 1 Erosion of Social Trust 2 Emergence of Clear Hierarchies in Society 3 Uncertainty Due to Increasing Crime and Unemployment 4 Always Attentive to Neighbors and Colleagues 5 The Movement Towards Self-Protective Postures III Responding to Self-Protective Lifestyles 1 Diversifying Personal Networks 2 Loose Ties Among Families 3 Return to Family Life from "Workaholism" IV Japanese Consumption Patterns 1 Trend Towards Convenient and Comfortable Products 2 Opening New Purchasing Channels 3 "Flocking" as a Means of Achieving Consumer Value V Prospects for Future Consumption 1 Greater Acceleration in Fashion Trends 2 Markets Will Be Dominated by Steady Consumption 3 Consumers Collecting Information by Themselves 4 Growth in Consumption Under the Influence of Groups VI What New Marketing Strategies Are Required? 1 "B2L2C" Marketing 2 Click and Mortar 3 Collaborated Marketing 4 Towards Community Marketing Strategies GO to PDF