Giri choco

Lore & Background

The origins of giving chocolate on Valentine's Day in Japan are unclear, but one popular explanation is that junior high school girls started the trend by giving handmade chocolate to boys to test their affections. It became commercialized in the mid-1950s, with the first Valentine's sale in 1958 at Mary's Chocolate. Harumichi Yamada from Tokyo Keizai University noted that the practice arose because women expressing love was considered disgraceful, and confectioneries capitalized on chocolate as a way for women to profess love. As women's social status improved, Valentine's Day became a day for women to give chocolate to men, leading to the giri choco custom. Sachiko Horiguchi from Temple University, Japan Campus suggested that giri choco first occurred in the 1980s, when working women were obligated to give chocolate to co-workers and bosses, fitting both corporate and gift-giving cultures.

Reader's Guide

Giri choco represents a unique intersection of Japanese gift-giving culture, corporate social obligations, and commercial marketing. Its significance lies in how it formalized a gendered ritual of workplace politeness, where women were expected to give inexpensive chocolate to male colleagues and superiors on Valentine's Day. This practice was reciprocated on White Day (March 14), when men gave gifts to women, a tradition started in the 1980s to boost sales. The economic impact has been substantial: as of 2019, some Japanese chocolate confectioneries made 70% of their annual business through Valentine's Day, and in 2005 approximately US$400,000,000 was spent on Valentine's Day chocolates. However, the tradition has faced decline since the late 2010s due to criticism of pressuring women, with some companies banning it as power harassment. By 2025, Bloomberg News described the practice as 'almost dead,' citing backlash, inconvenience, and the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on in-person interactions. This shift reflects changing social norms and a move toward friendship chocolate (tomo choco) given among friends.

Did You Know?

• Giri choco is distinct from honmei choco, which is given to romantic partners and is usually higher-quality and more expensive.
• The practice of giving giri choco first occurred in the 1980s, according to Sachiko Horiguchi from Temple University, Japan Campus.
• In 2018, Godiva Chocolatier published a full-page advertisement calling for workplaces to ban giri choco, though some called it stealth marketing.
• As of 2025, Bloomberg News described giri choco as 'almost dead,' citing polls showing few women intended to give it.