“Don’t forget to get some e-mooks!,” said Deszell enthusiastically to me before I left for my Tokyo trip in April
Wha–? E-mook? Is that the furry species from Star Wars? No, that’s Ewok.
So I learned about it, and discovered how it is an interesting concept, and not to mention a successful promotion tool.
E-mook is basically a term that the Japanese created – it means magazine + book. The product is more or less that — it looks like a book because of the thickness, but is in fact a magazine (well, a catalogue, actually). Because the majority of e-mooks are the result of collaborations between designers and fashion magazine publishers, an e-mook is all about a specific fashion label. Hence, the content is usually the designer’s newest collection.
Rows of e-mooks I found in Kinokuniya Shinjuku
The content of Anna Sui’s e-mook
What’s special about e-mooks is that they always include premium freebies or furoku, inserted in a box attached to every product. What are the gifts that e-mooks give away? They vary, but usually revolve around bags and pouches. If not, they are still always something useful. For instance, Yves Saint Laurent‘s January 2012 e-mook included a tote bags, Marc Jacobs’ 2010 Spring/Summer e-mook enclosed a mirror, a mini zipbag, and a towel, and Marimekko’s e-mook came with a tote bag and a pouch. Some give small-sized gifts, some give bigger-sized gifts.
Image from here
You can see the gift you’ll get from the e-mook’s cover
The cute makeup pouch that is included in Jil Stuart’s e-mook
An e-mook typically contains 150 pages, priced for about Rp150,000-Rp300,000, sometimes less when on discount. Not bad at all. Considering the freebies, I think e-mooks are good bargain.
E-mooks are very common in Japan, and they’ve started to gain fan bases worldwide. However, many people consider them as shameless promotion for brands because you’re basically buying a mere catalogue. On the other hand, e-mooks are of good value, especially if you consider the exclusively designed ‘gifts’ that come with each purchase. It’s like buying McDonald’s Happy Meals for the exclusive toys.
With their great value, no wonder e-mooks are a rage everywhere. Yup, not only in Japan, but in every other places that sells e-mooks in their Japanese bookstores, such as Kinokuniya. Even consumers who can’t read Japanese (like, ehm, Deszell) are buying them too.
It’s hard to say whether e-mooks are just a fad or a permanent merchandising and advertising concept. Nevertheless, it’s an interesting concept that brings original premium products closer to consumers, and makes brandings more effective.
Will you be interested in buying one or two?
