Tuesday was White Day in Japan, the day on which men who are supposed to reciprocate by giving cookies (or something else) to women who gave them chocolate on Valentine’s Day.

What I’ve heard but can’t confirm from any reliable source, is that White Day originated after a company who introduced Valentine’s Day in Japan in 1958 first tried to market it as it is in western countries, but apparently failed in their effort, as men wouldn’t by chocolate for the object of their love. As it is more traditional for men to declare their love to women in Japan, the company thought it would be a great way for women to express their feelings without the “embarrassment” of actually saying it, and switched their marketing campaign towards women. The new strategy worked well, and in 1965, a marshmallow company invented “Marshmallow Day” (which became “White Day” later on), a scheme to boost their sales by encouraging men into buying their product as a reply to the chocolate they had received on Valentine’s day.

Although it is not as popular as Valentine’s Day, it is still considered important enough to trigger a commercial frenzy!

Happy White Day!

Sylvain Bouchard