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Markets in everything, Japan edition
Get the double entendres out of your mind:
Lola - or Rora - to give her a slightly more Japanese pronunciation - is a beauty and she knows it.
Customers pay by the hour for her company. Usually they just want to stroke her, but as a special treat for favoured clients, she will lie back in a chair, close her eyes and pose for photographs.
Lola is a Persian cat who works at the Ja La La Cafe in Tokyo's bustling Akihabara district. It is one of a growing number of Cat Cafes in the city which provide visitors with short but intimate encounters with professional pets.
When I called, there were 12 felines and seven customers, mostly single men...
It costs about £8 ($10) an hour to spend time in a Cat Cafe.
Here is the article, courtesy of Marco Haan; other Japanese markets are discussed as well, including the renting of pet beetles.
And no, this next one is not a "sexy" Markets in Everything, but it, via Megan McArdle, is still remarkable in its own way: Quilt with Matching Tote.
Posted by Tyler Cowen on January 13, 2009 at 01:11 PM in Economics | Permalink
Comments
As a cat lover who can't have cats due to lease terms and spouse's allergies, I might be willing to occasionally pay $10/hour to pet some friendly felines. (Las Vegas's bookstores all seem to be cat-free.)
Posted by: Jacqueline at Jan 13, 2009 3:55:55 PM
Interesting to compare how we in the West view money as mediator. Here to have money mediate in a relationship is considered bad form at best to prostitution at worst. Whereas in Asia, money is an acceptable gift, so to "rent" a friend or to give money doesn't seem appalling, but rather, well, aimable.
Posted by: StreetWalker at Jan 13, 2009 5:19:11 PM
Reading the whole article, it seems the market in Japan is more differentiated than in the US.
We have personal services that can be hired by the hour(prostitutes, psychiatrists, cleaning services) but not cats, conversations with flattering women, motherly advice and other things mentioned in the article that may be of considerable value (and which are undoubtedly much cheaper than a shrink).
Posted by: ZBicyclist at Jan 13, 2009 6:02:37 PM
I might be willing to occasionally pay $10/hour to pet some friendly felines.
Most PetSmarts have cat adoptions on the weekends. Pet away for free!
Posted by: at Jan 13, 2009 8:19:18 PM
I laughed until I cried over that quilt and tote. But then again, I laugh out loud reading the captions to the photos in The Economist. Thank you every day.
Posted by: Michael Phillips at Jan 14, 2009 12:26:06 AM
For the same reasons as jacklyn agree that this is a rather good idea to bring here, though I am a dog person myself. Though I do feel bad that I am paying so that I can leave at will when I'm done with the cat or dog.
Posted by: Robert at Jan 14, 2009 12:26:07 AM
Our Maximum Leader can be petted for far less. A can of tuna would be adequate payment.
Posted by: K T Cat at Jan 14, 2009 8:52:44 AM
I've heard of a lot of odd markets in Japan. I plan to visit soon so that I can check them out for myself. These things seem crazy to us in the States, but if there is demand why not supply?
Posted by: Timothy at Jan 14, 2009 11:46:43 AM
