In Japan, gentians have been standard flowers for Buddha and ancestors. But they are recently coming into use for other specific moments as well including happy occasions such as medal ceremonies, weddings and baby gifts. Marketers have been successful in discovering the new usages of gentians by focusing on their colors and thick stems and this is also encouraging gentian growers to increase their production.
Winners of Inter College Swimming Championship 2016 including an Olympian Daiya Seto were offered bouquets of fresh gentians. (in Koto ward, Tokyo)
■Bouquets for winning athletes
In early September when people were still talking about great performances of athletes competed in Rio, winners of Inter College Swimming Championship 2016 including some Olympians such as Kosuke Hagino and Daiya Seto were given victory bouquets of fresh gentians when they toppprf the podium.
The idea of presenting gentians to the medalists was proposed by Japan’s largest flower wholesaler headquartered in Adachi ward, Tokyo, Daiichi Kaki Co., Ltd.. The wholesaler currently runs a project called Victory Bouquet Project in preparation for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020. Hitomi Matsunaga of the company successfully explained Japan Swimming Federation, an organizer of the championship, “The pure and dignified appearance of gentians will make them perfect symbol of Japan, like kimonos.”
Hana Cupid’s gentian arrangement is popular for their pure, clean colors. (in Minato ward, Tokyo)
■Gifts that will be something really special
The usage of gentians is also expanding at local flower shops. In mid August this year, “Hana Cupid,” which is a network shared by approximately 4,000 flower shops in Japan, added a new floral arrengment of pale pink gentians and den-phals (3780 yen) to its lineup on the Internet, and in the first week of September, it topped other arrengements in the sales of the flower delivery network based in Shinagawa ward, Tokyo. The orders came mainly from female customers between the ages of 35 and 45 who were looking for baby gifts or wedding presents.
Demand for gentians for table flowers, hair accessories and bouquets for bridal is expanding. (in Minato ward, Tokyo)
■Glamorous arrangements for wedding
More gentians are now being used as bridal flowers, too. Nogi Kaikan is a wedding hall in Minato ward, Tokyo, and gives hundreds of weddings a year. It says that gentians are becoming increasingly popular as a material to make table flowers, bridal bouquets, and hair accessories more glamorous. According to Kazutaka Tominaga, director of bridal business department at Kamon Flowergate Co., Ltd. headquartered in Chuo ward, Tokyo, and chief flower designer at Nogi Kaikan, “Gentians’ stems are thick and suitable for tall arrangements. Their flowers are small and have distinct colors and always look good when combined with other materials.”