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Handjob: The Japanese seitai body therapy studio that relieves built-up tension

SoraNews24 Apr 25, 2020
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For a memorable massage in Tokyo.

If you’re suffering from aches and pains in Japan, there are a variety of options available to help release all that built-up tension. You could head to a masseuse for a massage, a chiropractor for a skeletal adjustment, or a seitai practitioner for manipulative therapy based on Chinese and Japanese traditions.

Seitai is extremely popular in Japan, as it encompasses osteopathy, massage, and chiropractic techniques to restore equilibrium of the body through the spine and hips. And while there are plenty of them around, one particular seitai clinic has been making news recently, thanks to the below photo from Twitter user @HDHT_88.

▼ This seitai studio is called Handjob.

世界よ、これが日本人の英語力だ pic.twitter.com/8TohziJdvo

— Ｔちゃん in JPN🌐Fully Vaccinated (@HDHT_88) April 22, 2020

No, you’re not seeing things, and no, this isn’t a photoshopped image, as Handjob really existed. While it appears to be no longer in business, this Google street view image shows the sign when it was last seen back in 2013.

Located in Tokyo’s Itabashi Ward, the business’ official name of Seitai Koubou Handjob (Seitai Studio Handjob) sounds like an innocent-enough name to Japanese ears, given that the separate words “hand” and “job” are easily understood by learners of English as a second language. Putting the words together simply describes the job done by any massage therapist who uses their hands to work on stiff muscles…without conjuring up an image of that stiff muscle, as it does for native English speakers.

People who saw the sign and knew its steamier meaning couldn’t help but giggle at the lost-in-translation moment.

“How many customers do you think were disappointed after they had a session and realised there was no happy ending?”
“Omg they should’ve researched the word before committing to that name!”
“Alternative reading: “H-and-job.”
“A name like that does all the advertising for you!”
“Do you think maybe they really knew what ‘handjob’ meant and this is just a terrific marketing ploy?”

The curious name of this business does bring up the question of whether there was a cunning marketing plan concealed behind the innocent pretence. After all, this is the country where McDonald’s decided to release the Adult Cream Pie.

Regardless of whether the name was intentional or not, it certainly made a lasting impression, with people still talking about it to this day, years after it went out of business. Kind of like that time the new Aeon shopping mall announced to its customers that it was “cumming soon”.

Source: Twitter/@HDHT_88
Featured image: Pakutaso
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