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Renting a Girlfriend in Japan: Relationship goals or just plain awkward? 【Video】

Oona McGee May 3, 2019
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Japanese rental girlfriend spills all the details on what it’s like to date a complete stranger.

In recent years, people in Japan have been saving face, showing off, or curing their blues by renting family members, friends, partners, and hot guys to wipe away their tears.

Now, these rental services are becoming increasingly popular in Japan, where people can be busy overworking themselves or struggling to connect with people in the real world offline. So what’s it like to go on a date with a rental girlfriend? And what’s it like to be one? YouTube channel Asian Boss recently addressed the topic in a video by trying out one of the services in Tokyo, and discussing all the details with rental girlfriend Shihomi over a meal and a coffee.

Take a look at the video below:

In the video, Shihomi, or Shiho-chan, goes on a date with her “bae” Max, meeting on a street in Tokyo before heading to a fugu blowfish restaurant for lunch.

Here she reveals the price of renting a girlfriend, which, at her company, costs 6,000 yen (US$53.81) per hour for a two-hour minimum rental. This means it costs at least 12,000 yen to rent a girlfriend, and while first-timers can select their girlfriend at no extra charge, selections after the first date come at an additional cost of 2,000 yen.

▼ She’ll order you a meal of shirako fish semen and pick the rice off your face at no extra cost though.

Shiho says the rental girlfriend gets paid roughly half of the rental cost, and people of all ages, from their mid-twenties upwards, use the service.

According to Shiho, who’s been doing this job for six months, many of the men who seek out a rental girlfriend are those who’ve never had a girlfriend or even been out with a girl before, or those who are too busy to have a real partner. The men she’s been on dates with are usually mild, retiring types.

For those wanting to try out the rental service, Shiho’s company has some strict rules to keep things professional and above board. Clients are not allowed to contact the rental girlfriend directly, and seeing as this line of work is not classed as “fuzoku” – a term that refers to the adult-oriented service sector, which covers jobs ranging from bar hostess to topless dancer and erotic masseuse – accepting tips and expensive gifts is prohibited.

As for her message to people who are thinking of renting a girlfriend, Shiho says she’s looking forward to dating them. And although she’s not fluent in English, she”s happy to show foreign tourists around Tokyo, which would make for a very unique sightseeing tour.

Still, Shiho is not the only woman renting out her company in Tokyo, as our Japanese-language reporters have rented out a little sister and dated a girlfriend for a karaoke session before. And with American talk show host Conan O’Brien renting an entire family for a day in Tokyo, more people around the world are finding out about Japan’s unique rental services, which are more than just a gimmick, as they offer a real sense of companionship too.

Source, images: YouTube/Asian Boss
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