Okinawa's hotel industry had started wearing Okinawa-style Aloha shirts in 1970, in hopes of bringing out more tourist activities.
These shirts were printed with traditional Okinawa arts, and later in then 1990's started to call them “Kariyushi”, meaning happiness. These shirts were eventually adopted by the white-collars of Okinawa as the outfit for casual Fridays.
In 2005, with Prime Minister Koizumi's call for Cool Biz (dressing lighter and keeping air-conditioners at offices at 28), orders for Kariyushi increased rapidly.
Shipments that had been at around 40,000 in 1997, is now over 300,000 as Okinawa's Apparel Sewing Industrial Association announced. Prime Minister Koizumi had worn a Kariyushi on June 1st, the starting date of Cool Biz 2 years in a row, and 600 orders were made for the same shirts.
These Japanese Aloha shirts were originally open shirt, but have been fitted to meet the market needs for Tokyo and metropolitan areas. The one Prime Minister Koizumi had worn was with a poke collar.
Now, the government is pushing forth the Kariyushi, and has even introduced the shirts on the Cabinet Office website. Such enforcement is said to be a way to amend the upset citizens of Okinawa with the US base issues, but whatever the reason, the shirts are a big hit with the Tokyo people.
As the Cool Biz campaign is becoming more inhibited by businesses and among the business men who had always worn suits, men's shirt market is bound to be growing ecstatically.
20240830145952.gif)
.jpg?tr=w-120,h-60,c-at_max,cm-pad_resize,bg-ffffff "UBM China (Shanghai)")
-Ltd..jpg?tr=w-120,h-60,c-at_max,cm-pad_resize,bg-ffffff "Thermore (Far East) Ltd.")
