While the global recession has affected countries around the world, it’s interesting to see how these tumultuous times has affected everyone else. The Japanese has always been one of the world’s biggest spenders in the luxury goods market, however that’s all about to change.

In the past, Japanese resorted to conformity rather than individualism in order to fit in with the rest of the hip crowd. They would save every penny in order to purchase that one big ticket item: a pair of rare sneakers or designer handbag. Sacrifices were made to luxury experiences such as a fine meal at a restaurant, a day at the spa, or even a vacation away from home. The Japanese are now as likely to spend their hard earned money on luxury experiences than on luxury goods.

International luxury brands like Versace, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and Hugo Boss have either closed stores in Japan or made cancellations to store openings. Their survival in Japan were maintained by their strong brand image alone and the necessity to conform with everyone else rocking these luxury items. Now the Japanese are resorting to thrift stores to get their hands at a piece of vintage clothing in order to express individualism. Rather than owning the same luxury brand items in order to fit in, being able to own a piece of vintage clothing that no one else has seems to be a more attractive option. This trend is further described by Jing in The Old New Trend: Vintage. Despite the cultural differences we may have, it’s always interesting to see the same trends occurring. Looking broke is the new cool.