Far from describing a twanging marsupial, the word Ganguro actually means "black face". It's a fashion term that tends to be used by Japanese girls. It tends to involve bleaching hair a platinum blonde, having deeply tanned skin, rimming eyes with black and white pencil liner, applying false lashes, colored glasses and sporting platform shoes, either sandals or boots. It's a look hot enough to leave even Malibu Barbie green with envy!
It is also characteristic of "Ganguro Girls" to cover their cell phones with their purikura sticker collections (small, retouched, personal pictures), tie sarongs around their waists, wear mini skirts, Hibiscus bobby pins, a lot of bracelets, rings and necklaces.
Extreme Ganguro followers wear white lipstick and multicolored pastel eye shadow to offset their tans, and wear eccentric adhesives around their eyes.
If an oriental version of Paris Hilton is unpleased with her ganguro look, she evolves like Pokemon, and ends up being a
New Urban Tribes
Ganguros & Yamanbas
Trend Themes
1. Platinum Blonde Hair - Opportunity for disruptive innovation in hair dye and hair care products to cater to the demand for platinum blonde hair in the Ganguro fashion trend.
2. Tan Skin - Opportunity for disruptive innovation in self-tanning products and skincare for achieving deeply tanned skin, a key feature of the Ganguro look.
3. Purikura Sticker Collections - Opportunity for disruptive innovation in digital sticker apps and platforms to enable users to personalize and decorate their photos, similar to the Ganguro girls' purikura sticker collections.
Industry Implications
1. Hair Care Products - Opportunity for disruptive innovation in the hair care industry to develop products specifically designed for bleached platinum blonde hair, popular among Ganguro fashion followers.
2. Cosmetics and Skincare - Opportunity for disruptive innovation in the cosmetics and skincare industry to create self-tanning products and skincare routines that cater to achieving a deeply tanned skin tone, as desired in the Ganguro trend.
3. Digital Photography and Social Media - Opportunity for disruptive innovation in the digital photography and social media industries to develop platforms and apps that allow users to decorate and personalize their photos with digital stickers, similar to the Ganguro girls' purikura sticker collections.