By Hina Suzuki
Facial hair removal was once the most sought-after treatment at Gorilla Clinic, which has 23 outlets nationwide, but demand has now grown for other body areas, said Hiroyuki Ota, director of the branch in Tokyo’s posh Ginza district.
“When I was thinking about what to start with, hair removal felt like the most obvious, visible choice,” said Yuki Kubo, a 24-year-old office worker wearing safety glasses for the fourth treatment of his legs at the clinic in the Japanese capital. Removing body hair was a New Year’s resolution made with friends, he said, but the resulting smooth surface made him feel and look cleaner, besides eliminating his sweaty discomfort.
Japan’s largest beauty-focused online booking and review platform, Hot Pepper Beauty, said just over a quarter of the men it surveyed this year had been treated for lower-leg hair removal over the past 12 months.
Amid record summer temperatures, even the Tokyo metropolitan government took its long-standing no-tie, no-jacket “Cool Biz” initiative a step further this year, promoting lighter clothing to help staff battle the heat and save energy. That kind of demand makes it tougher to score an appointment at the Ginza clinic, Ota said, adding, “It was rare for appointment slots to fill up completely when the clinic first opened 11 years ago.”
