Business leaders weigh in on Uniqlo chief’s ‘Japanese people may perish’ remarks

Fast Retailing Co. President and Chairman Tadashi Yanai is seen in Tokyo’s Minato Ward on June 9, 2023. (Mainichi/Kimitaka Takeichi)

TOKYO — “The Japanese people may perish.” This comment by Tadashi Yanai, the chairman and president of global apparel brand Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing Co., has sparked debate online, with even titans of Japanese business weighing in.

Yanai made the controversial remarks during an interview on a Nippon Television Network program aired in late August. He stated, “The Japanese people may perish if they don’t learn how to get work done with a select few people.” He added, “If we don’t make efforts to raise labor productivity, Japan won’t survive going forward. As the population continues to decline, there’s a possibility that public and private services may become unavailable.”

Zozo Inc. founder Yusaku Maezawa is seen in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward on April 10, 2024. (Mainichi/Kaho Kitayama)

He then offered his view that, as Japan’s labor force diminishes, the country will need to accept immigrants capable of filling managerial and research and development roles to improve productivity, as done in other countries.

In response to Yanai’s statements, Yusaku Maezawa, founder of fashion e-commerce company Zozo Inc., countered on X (formerly Twitter), saying, “I feel the opposite.” He wrote, “I feel that Japanese uniqueness will be key to the country’s strength in the future, and I find the idea of conforming to globalization, which diminishes that (uniqueness), and allowing ourselves to be caught up in the whirlpool questionable. We should strengthen our sense of unity and leverage our Japanese identity to become an even more robust nation.”

Rakuten Group Inc. CEO and Chairman Hiroshi Mikitani is seen at the prime minister’s office in Tokyo on May 30, 2024. (Mainichi/Akihiro Hirata)

Meanwhile, Rakuten Group Inc. CEO and Chairman Hiroshi Mikitani commented in a weekly magazine interview, “I don’t know the true intention behind Mr. Yanai’s remarks, but it’s true that Japan lacks vitality.” Speaking about how people work in Japan, he said, “In countries outside Japan, employees at startups and IT companies work intensely. Only in Japan do we tell workers to ‘go home early,’ and that’s not going to cut it. Based on the premise of building health management frameworks, we need to consider creating a new labor system for growing businesses,” calling for a review of current labor regulations, which generally cap overtime at 45 hours a month, as part of the government-led workstyle reform.

The series of remarks has generated a lot of discussion on social media, with such comments as, “We may not perish, but we will decline,” and, “Isn’t Yanai the one who has been making Japan cheap by continuing to offer products at low prices?”

(Japanese original by Yuhi Sugiyama, Business News Department)

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