The other day, I was out in my city and I saw a sign that said “Retro is in”. I couldn’t help but think about this resurgence where Gyaru is making a comeback in a way, and even then I still panic thinking about the imbalance in supply and demand for it. Anyway that got me to thinking and doing some reading as usual on the topic: Japan had already considered there to be a Gal Mind boom back in 2019, but we haven’t fully seen that boom develop until just this year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6wkDAbM5K0
So here’s what we know: The Gyaru boom started with Namie Amuro (with Amurer/Amura style) and then went on with Ayumi Hamasaki (also called Ayu dependence). Gyaru fashion, more specifically Ganguro and its derivatives, back then were super recognizable: bright brown hair, large pierced earrings, platform boots, miniskirts, thin eyebrows and white lips. By 2010, Gyaru was then marketed as general women’s fashion (we saw this change most noticeably around 2012-2014). Then of course by around 2016 and upwards, we start seeing a shift in what we know to be Kogal into a much more modernized and practically irrecognizable version: sneakers, dark blue high socks, and a backpack, and a bob cut usually with bangs. The shift in wanting to emulate charismas overall has now shifted to idols and YouTubers.
(Anyone else get sad just reading this? No? Just me? Okay.)
With the mini resurgences coming up here and there and the now more obvious one, one thing has been made clear: Gyaru have not disappeared.
So here’s the thing and I know I’ve said it countless times on here, on social media, and to everyone that will listen to me until I’m blue in the face LOL but Gyaru is more than just the appearance! Japan is now recognizing this as of late and calling it the Gal Mind, so let’s talk about that for a sec.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXaYZR6hKRQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2WbVCunJ1Q
As we’re well aware, trends are always changing–constantly–so in places that are more oriented towards following these trends, there are of course certain rules and insights in order to stay fashionable. The Gal Mind is similar to this: Gyaru are defined essentially as women who have the power to constantly pursue new things and establish new common sense for things that may at first seem insane at first. That’s essentially what the Gal Mind is, what Japan considers to be a key factor in creating new trends, consumer behavior, and last but not least, culture. When it comes to consumerism, Gal Mind is, to put it simply, a “pioneering spirit” that opens up new markets.
PS: It should be clear with my past post on the Gal Mind (The Gal Mind Boom) that there are a couple of different aspects to what it is. The first is more attitude, while the other is more mindset.
It comes as no surprise that one thing we’ve all been able to notice as vets is that the SNS era changed the game for Gyaru. We went from valuing charisma (clerks, singers, actors, whatever) to valuing influencers – which if you think about it really are a type of charisma. The biggest difference is that these new versions of charismas–the influencers–are 100% more relatable and attainable than a shop clerk fully decked out in ALBA ROSA for example.