Valentine’s day is a day for lovers. In Japan, it is a day that girls give chocolates to boys they like. Soon after the traditional Japanese decorations for New year are gone, stores and markets get filled with Valentine’s chocolates from low budget to luxury categories. This custom of giving chocolate from girls to boys was started by a chocolate maker and now it has become a huge annual market next to Christmas. (It is said that nowadays Halloween is a bigger event than Valentine’s, but still it is one of the big yearly events.)
Valentine’s day in Japan became popular about 60 years ago, and the ways of celebrating Valentine’s are changing year by year. There are lots of kinds of chocolates that are on sale before Valentine’s day, and it is fun to just see those varieties of sweets. Girls who love chocolate enjoy choosing their gifts for loved ones. These days chocolate giving is not only to lovers but also to friends and even as a self-gifting practice. Most chocolate gifts can be categorized into 4 types as shown below.
- True Love Chocolate (本命チョコ/Honmei choco) : for a boy who a girl really loves.
- Thank You Chocolate (義理チョコ/Giri choco) : for people who want to show gratitude towards someone like a colleague or client or for boys who one just likes as a friend.
- Friend Chocolate (友チョコ/Tomo Choco): Usually happens between girls. Swapping their favorite chocolate with their friends.
- For-myself Chocolate (ご褒美チョコ/Gohobi choco): Nowadays I think this is the biggest volume. They buy luxury or their favorite chocolate or sweets for themselves as a reward for working hard every day. Usually they buy cheap snacks which are priced at 100 to 300 yen in convenience stores, but for Valentine’s season they enjoy finding their favorite chocolate in a more luxurious fashion. According to the latest news, there are some ladies who spend more than 20,000 yen for themselves.
Also, handmade chocolates/sweets are still popular. At supermarkets, they have a bunch of handmade kits. Nowadays, elementary school girls also enjoy making chocolate with their moms to giving their handmade chocolate to their friends at school. The homemade Valentine’s goods have got more variety and choices year by year. Even at 100 yen shops, they have Valentine’s corner and selling cute wrapping goods.
Me? I will be enjoying “for-myself chocolate” of course.
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