Japan's discount store Donki reverses decision to replace mascot after uproar
「ドンキ」公式キャラ交代 “反対”ネット上で殺到→撤回 「炎上商法?」の声も
Donki has more than 600 stores across the nation and is famous for selling multiple ranges of products at discounted prices. Donki's blue penguin mascot wearing a Santa hat 'Donpen' has become the store's identity.
Hence, when it was announced that Donki will replace Donpen it lead to a huge uproar over Japanese social media in the past week.
On Twitter, the store announced its decision to replace its penguin mascot with "Dojo-chan", which is an anthropomorphic representation of "do", a Japanese katakana character. No reason was stated for the change in its mascot.
The sudden decision to replace the mascot led to an outpour of angry reactions on social media. Few people posted their photos in Donpen onesies, while other people said that they will boycott Donki stores. ...continue reading

NHK - Jun 02
The latest novel by Japanese author Murakami Haruki has racked up the country's highest sales for any category of book in the past six months.

Japan Today - May 31
Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the world's biggest, will from now on vote against the nomination of all-male boards in Japanese companies, a senior fund official said Tuesday.

coinjournal.net - May 31
The largest airline in Japan, Air Nippon Airways (ANA), has today launched an aeronautical-themed non-fungible tokens (NFTs) marketplace with its subsidiary ANA Neo.

yahoo.com - May 29
Japan's Nikkei share average rose on Monday to its highest level since July 1990, buoyed by optimism over a U.S. debt ceiling deal and a weaker yen.

coingeek.com - May 29
After years of handling it with leniency, Japanese lawmakers have confirmed plans to impose stricter Anti-Money Laundering (AML) rules for the digital currency industry.

NHK - May 29
Regional banks in Japan saw unrealized losses surge in fiscal 2022. A new survey says the figure climbed by more than 5 times in yen terms over the previous year as investments sank.

NHK - May 26
Overall prices in the Japanese capital remain high as people continue to pay more for food and some services.

straitstimes.com - May 23
Japan’s slow post-pandemic recovery is showing signs of growing momentum, according to the latest gauges of strength in the service and factory sectors.

NOJ - May 21
Honda announced that it will start selling electric motorcycles to the general public for the first time in Japan.

NHK - May 20
Employees at some of Japan's biggest firms can expect a sizable bump in their pay checks this year. They'll see an average increase of nearly 4 percent following annual wage negotiations. That's the largest jump in 31 years.

Nikkei - May 19
Sony Group will spin off its financial unit to focus resources on entertainment and image sensor operations as the investment burden needed to compete with foreign rivals continues to rise.

Nikkei - May 19
China overtook Japan as the world's top auto exporter in the first quarter, spurred by rising demand for electric vehicles and increased deliveries to Russia.

Kyodo - May 19
Japan's trade deficit nearly halved to a one-year low of 432.41 billion yen ($3 billion) in April, as imports dropped for the first time in 27 months on lower crude oil prices, while U.S.-bound auto shipments delivered record exports, the Finance Ministry said Thursday.

Crypto Daily - May 18
Japan, which missed out on the Web2 revolution -- by failing to produce its own Meta, Google, Amazon, and Alibaba -- is now looking to regain its economic prowess by embracing the burgeoning crypto and Web3 industry.

straitstimes.com - May 17
Japan's economy expanded at a faster pace than expected in the first quarter as a further easing of pandemic regulations boosted consumption.

NHK - May 17
The benchmark index for the Tokyo Stock Exchange climbed above 30,000 for the first time in a year and 8 months. The gains reflect rising investor confidence amid robust earnings and improving forecasts at Japanese companies.