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P&G "The Project to Transform Household Chores from JOB to JOY"
Procter & Gamble Japan's kitchen detergent brand "JOY" launched the "Shift Housework from JOB to JOY Project" on November 2nd, encouraging couples to share not just household chores but also their feelings.
As part of this initiative, an event was held on November 21st, the day before "Good Couples Day," at AEON Mall Makuhari Shintoshin in Chiba Prefecture. The event featured comedian Ota Hirohisa from the trio Jungle Pocket and model Kondo Chihiro, who are a married couple.
Brand Manager Mariko Nagami explained, "While dual-income households now exceed 60% in Japan and values are shifting, household chores still disproportionately burden women." She added that understanding wives' desire for husbands to do housework stems from wanting their husbands' consideration. Therefore, the company aims to promote sharing household chores not just as tasks (JOB), but as shared feelings (JOY). "We launched this project driven by a strong desire to support many women and men right now. We'd be happy if this sentiment reaches everyone, even just a little," she stated.
To kick off the project, the company released a household division video titled "Things We Share Together," intended for couples to watch. It surpassed 2.5 million views within two weeks.
( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=do3HWd9ETsk )
With the tagline "We want to share because we want to understand each other," the video realistically depicts the "household chores division" of a couple who went from being lovers to spouses.
Guests Mr. Ota and Ms. Kondo are new parents who married in 2015 and welcomed their first child, a daughter, this past May. Juggling their careers while tackling daily chores and childcare, Mr. Ota's hands-on parenting has recently gained attention through Ms. Kondo's Instagram. The couple discussed their household division and daily mindset.
Mr. Ota says he started doing housework after learning about Ms. Kondo's pregnancy. He now mainly handles dishwashing and bath cleaning, and is so thorough he uses four dishwashing sponges. However, when he first started doing chores, he felt like he was "doing them for her." After the baby was born, life became even busier, leading to misunderstandings. Ms. Kondo sometimes felt overwhelmed by the housework burden and "exploded."
Kondo revealed her feelings: "When I'm irritable, it looks like I'm angry, but really, I just want him to understand how I feel and be there for me."
After that, talking things through as a couple brought about a change in her feelings.
Ota explained, "Rather than doing it for the other person, once I started thinking 'I can do this, so I'll do it' in daily life, communication became smoother. Now we 'share' the load. It's not just about dividing tasks; sharing each other's stress and understanding each other's feelings is what matters."
At the venue, the couple challenged themselves to wash dishes together. Ota washed the dishes while Kondo rinsed them, demonstrating their collaborative effort. A surprise appeared: the word "love" formed on the dishes washed with JOY, bringing smiles to the couple's faces. Kondo expressed her delight: "He's not usually the type to do surprises, so this means a lot." She added shyly, "Standing together in the kitchen or cleaning becomes precious communication. Even just talking about the day's events is enough. Even as our children grow up, I want us to become an even more loving couple."
Project site: http://m.myrepi.com/joy/jobtojoy/
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