Japan's 20-Somethings Flock to Marriage Agencies as 100 Swipes Fail to Deliver
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 29
Japan's 20-Somethings Flock to Marriage Agencies as 100 Swipes Fail to Deliver
1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 29
Summary
Record numbers of Japanese young adults are signing up with marriage agencies, paying premium fees for counselors who promise a faster path to marriage.
Frustration with dating apps is driving the shift: singles cite endless matching, ghosting, catfishing and noncommittal encounters, while shrinking social circles make offline introductions harder.
Tokyo agencies are marketing themselves as a modern version of omiai, the traditional arranged-introduction system once handled by relatives, family friends or bosses.
For clients like 28-year-old Taizen Yasuda, the appeal is efficiency — a human middleman who can screen for partners with the same explicit goal of marriage.