As the reuse market continues to boom, Japan’s government has begun working with an industry group to take steps against malicious actors among businesses that collect used items from homes to then sell at secondhand shops. A general seminar was held in Tokyo in early July on how to manage houses left vacant. The lecturer urged participants to carefully check the wishes of the owners (typically parents), sort through the abandoned belongings and dispose of anything considered unnecessary.
According to The Reuse Economic Journal, a Japanese newspaper, the size of the market reached a record ¥3.3 trillion in 2024, almost triple the level of 2009, when the market survey began. One reason for the growth is “increasing demand for service operators that clear out goods from family homes left vacant because of the aging population and a shift toward nuclear families,“ said Akira Hatabe, 66, head of industry group Japan Reuse Organization. According to the National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan, the number of consultations on problems related to the collection of unwanted household effects in fiscal 2025 reached 2,680, about twice the number in fiscal 2016.
One consumer said that items were not properly collected despite a contract that cost ¥1 million, while another said that items of sentimental value were discarded without consultation. The center has called on the public to ensure they choose licensed operators of services such as waste disposal and go through the fine print in the contract. The Environment Ministry plans to draw up by the end of fiscal 2027 guidelines for evaluating unwanted-items collectors in cooperation with the Japan Reuse Organization.
Companies certified as quality service providers will be granted additional aid.
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