Coffee in Japan: The Sweet Strategy
- Omar
- Jun 7
- 2 min read
Tea has always been an integral part of Japanese society. It is a cultural cornerstone that touches on art, spirituality, health, and social connection.
This is most evident in the Japanese tea ceremony (茶道, sadō or chadō, meaning "the way of tea") – a highly ritualized and meditative practice that reflects core values such as harmony, respect, purity, and tranquillity.
If you were to open a shop in Japan, you'd hardly sell a single cup of the dark-bean drink. So how did Japan become the world’s fourth largest consumer of coffee? [1]
Country | Total Coffee Consumption 2022 (Tonnes) |
United States | 1,697,000 |
Germany | 587,000 |
Philippines | 552,000 |
Japan | 480,000 |
Brazil | 466,000 |
A Remarkable Story in Marketing
In the 1970s, Nestle recognised a potential market for its coffee in Japan. With Japan’s economy growing, Nestle ambitiously launched its flagship coffee brand, Nescafe.
Despite getting positive results initially, sales remained dull. Japanese consumers, who were so deeply rooted in tea culture, could not accept coffee as a daily beverage.
No amount of advertising, sampling or promotions helped. What else could be done?
Brewing Demand Where None Existed
A psychologist is the solution. As known in marketing psychology, consumers often make purchases based on emotional impulses rather than rationalisations.
This is especially true with brands since they evoke emotions, memories, and a sense of community. Dr. Clotaire Rapaille, a child psychiatrist, was called on by Nestle for suggestions.
After some experiments focusing on the emotions involved and the memories of the Japanese participants, he suggested that the company save their advertising dollars as the solution was not a matter of common marketing.
Unlike tea, coffee did not have any childhood association with Japanese consumers. They'd never tasted coffee, hence had no emotional bond to the drink. Tea had been their drink for a millennia.
The Sweet Strategy
Due to these psychological elements in the way of their objective, the adults are out of the picture. Rapaille suggested to get the children to love Nestle's coffee flavour from an early age.
With Nestle globally known for making good candy, they started flooding the Japanese market with the coffee-flavoured candies. With the growing popularity of this new-flavour candy also grew the associations of Japanese youth with the taste of coffee.
It planted the seed of future coffee consumption habits as well as familiarising the adult population with the new flavour of coffee to come.
A decade later, Nestle reintroduced their coffee to a market that’s ready, becoming one of the largest consumers of coffee worldwide.
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