🍻 Cheers to Everyone Who Joined the Second “Beers with Real Gaijin” -- Let’s Talk Japan (S-01, E-02)

🍻 Thank you to everyone who joined the second “Beers with Real Gaijin” live stream on Sunday evening! Like last month, what started as an experiment—an informal conversation without an agenda about recent Real Gaijin articles, Japan-related news, and whatever else was on your mind—turned into the kind of lively exchange I had hoped for.

Key Takeaways

While we enjoyed a wide-ranging discussion that included a review of several recently published Real Gaijin articles, the five main points to take away were probably the following (see below for links to related articles):

* Japan’s foreign-resident population is growing larger, becoming more diverse, and growing in economic importance: Japan’s foreign population has grown to roughly 4.2 million, with the largest groups coming from China, Vietnam, South Korea, and the Philippines. Meanwhile, newer communities, such as those from Sri Lanka, are becoming increasingly visible. At the same time, foreign workers are moving beyond the traditional image of temporary, low-wage labor into higher-skilled, better-paid, and longer-term roles.

* Doing business in Japan still depends heavily on relationships, localization, and patience: The discussion of LinkedIn, Eight, and Tomomi Iwasaki’s experience highlights a persistent difference between Japan and Western markets: Cold outreach is relatively ineffective, while personal introductions and established relationships carry considerable weight. Foreign companies also need to temper their expectations of immediate results and be prepared to localize their products and approach.

* Japan’s economic recovery remains uneven despite stronger wage growth: Large Japanese companies are delivering wage increases that have finally begun to exceed inflation, producing modest real-wage gains. However, these benefits are not evenly distributed across the economy, which helps explain why households remain cautious and why consumer spending has not accelerated correspondingly.

* Japan’s demographic challenge begins well before childbirth—with marriage, relationships, and a shrinking pool of young adults: Falling marriage rates are particularly important in Japan because births are still largely associated with marriage. Combined with the already small population of young children, this suggests that Japan’s demographic contraction is becoming structurally embedded and cannot be addressed solely through policies aimed at supporting parents after children are born.

* Japan’s aging population is redefining what “retirement” looks like: The rapid growth of older workers taking seasonal resort baito (part-time work) illustrates both opportunity and economic necessity. Seniors can earn income while traveling and gaining new experiences, and employers can hire experienced, flexible workers. However, this phenomenon also exposes a deeper problem: many Japanese people may need to continue working well into their traditional retirement years because their pensions and savings are insufficient for a potentially decades-long retirement.

Q & A

Q1: Do the Japanese have a purity law for beer?

A1: Japan does not have a German-style beer “purity law,” but its Liquor Tax Act strictly defines what can be legally labeled as “beer.” Beer must contain at least 50% malt by weight (not including hops or water), but, unlike the traditional German Reinheitsgebot, Japan allows ingredients such as rice, corn, starch, sugars, fruit, and certain spices and herbs. In 2018, the rules were significantly liberalized, lowering the malt threshold and allowing more flavoring ingredients. This gave craft brewers greater flexibility. Beverages that do not meet these requirements are generally classified as happōshu (発泡酒), or another category, rather than as beer.

🍺 I’m already looking forward to the next “Beers with Real Gaijin“ in October—our own little “October Fest!” The invitation will be sent out soon…

🎉 P.S. I look forward to meeting you in person at the upcoming “Japan Substackers IRL Meetup in Tokyo” on November 5, 2026, if you’re able to make it.

Related articles

#BeersWithRealGaijin #リアル外人と飲む #ResidentForeigners #RealGaijin #リアル外人

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