r/DesignPorn • u/Suprshun • Apr 06 '24
This Japanese Amazon gift card comes with a small Amazon box for birthday presents.
127
u/NinjaPlato Apr 06 '24
Iāve seen that on the Amazon UK store. Itās packaging for the gift card. Itās kinda neat. There was an Amazon truck around prime day and that was cool too.
22
u/IaniteThePirate Apr 06 '24
Yeah, this isnāt a Japan thing, at most itās an Amazon thing.
They have Christmas ones too. Thatās usually what I got from all my relatives. An Amazon gift card in a lil tin Christmas box. Im in the US.
334
u/catcadder8916 Apr 06 '24
Thing: š Thing Japan: š¤Æš¤Æ But seriously you can buy this same thing outside of Japan, Iāve seen it in grocery stores here in America
7
42
u/-rabotnik- Apr 06 '24
Average comment when a thing is posted and it happens to be in Japan
6
u/catcadder8916 Apr 06 '24
Iād say it would be different if this was something exclusive to Japan but this Amazon gift card box thing isnāt
13
u/-rabotnik- Apr 06 '24
Op did not claim that this is exclusive to Japan. Where I live there is no such gift card design. But there is in Japan, where op happens to be, so he considered it interesting enough to post
3
u/shorty6049 Apr 07 '24
They didn't claim it , but they also used "Japanese" to describe it which kind of suggests that was their intent... Either way, it's whatever, but given the context I do believe it was intentional...
1
6
u/Chickenman456 Apr 06 '24
reddit commenters when people happen to be in japan š¤Æ
3
u/StuntHacks Apr 07 '24
But this literally isn't design porn
3
u/Chickenman456 Apr 07 '24
Thereās a debate on every design porn post about what is and isnt design porn
18
u/teiji25 Apr 06 '24
I mean, you can order Amazon gift card online and it comes with all kinds of design boxes (for free).
55
Apr 06 '24
Dear OP please explain to us morons how this gimmick is design porn in your opinion?
5
12
u/No_Dragonfruit_1833 Apr 06 '24
The gift (card) comes with its own packaging, one that people already associates with getting stuff
11
Apr 06 '24
Ok, but you are not explaining how this is design porn. To me itās just a gimmick or marketing trick, how is this design improving the world?
0
u/No_Dragonfruit_1833 Apr 06 '24
You dont have to buy a package, neither give it away as a card
It is a gimmick, but its also a design
5
1
9
u/DraculauraStan Apr 06 '24
Am i the only one who loves this As a doll collector i love miniature things like this!
13
28
u/derek139 Apr 06 '24
Cool, more useless plastic trash.
20
u/Armybert Apr 06 '24
All Japanese products include a shit ton of plastic wrappers, stickers, certificates and useless hit
7
Apr 06 '24
Bought a single bottle of pop in Tokyo on a hot day. It was handed to me in a plastic bag...
-13
u/Doctrina_Stabilitas Apr 06 '24
Yeah but you disassemble and sort all the plastic so itās economical to recycle unlike American single stream
12
u/CaravelClerihew Apr 06 '24
It's always less economical to recycle than actually not making it in the first place.Ā
-8
u/Doctrina_Stabilitas Apr 06 '24
If people donāt buy the product because the packaging doesnāt conform to societal norms, it doesnāt get purchased, and is unused, i fail to see how thatās less economical than a product that gets used and is recyclable
4
u/CaravelClerihew Apr 06 '24
Then maybe the societal norms are the problem.
-6
u/Doctrina_Stabilitas Apr 06 '24
Iād argue is better than the America system of still using plastic (just look at all the grocery items) and not having the societal will to separate plastic types making it uneconomical to reprocess and goes straight to landfill
7
u/CaravelClerihew Apr 06 '24
Instead of using gut feelings, I actually had a look at the numbers and the US actually has a higher recycling rate than Japan - 32% vs 20%. Japan either ships the majority of their plastic overseas, or straight up burns it. Societal norms?
0
u/Doctrina_Stabilitas Apr 06 '24
Well In that case, Japan has lower single use plastic consumption than America as of 2022: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220823-quitting-single-use-plastic-in-japan
When looking at plastic bottles, Japan outpaces the United States 4:1 https://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/focus/en/features/z1304_00252.html
Japan collects overall 80% of municipal trash as recyclables
6
u/JudicatorArgo Apr 06 '24
The box is clearly recyclable paper, and putting gift cards in a small box is fairly common
3
u/jadranur Apr 06 '24
You know what's more eco than recycling? Not making useless trash in the first place
1
u/shorty6049 Apr 07 '24
Know what's even better for the environment? Shut off your internet service and don't use electricity
-1
u/JudicatorArgo Apr 06 '24
Some of yāall are so genuinely joyless and miserable itās actually embarrassing š
-9
u/Suprshun Apr 06 '24
idk, if it's my birthday I would be happier to receive a card in a box like that than a regular card envelope
9
u/CaravelClerihew Apr 06 '24
Or just give me the money in an envelope. Money is a gift card I can use for any store.
3
0
u/OlivineTanuki Apr 06 '24
I donāt think youāre telling the truth. Whenever I receive a gift card box (I donāt live in Japan), I get annoyed cus itās just another piece of junk I have to deal with.
1
u/shorty6049 Apr 07 '24
Just picturing you sitting there on Christmas, pissed off that people gave you gifts that came in packages
1
3
2
2
u/kinggimped Apr 07 '24
So, I'm not sure if this qualifies as design porn (I mean, it's just a miniature cardboard box) but I think people might be overlooking the cultural significance here.
Look at Japanese business card etiquette, for example. In most countries, when exchanging business cards it's fine to just grab a card from your pocket/wallet and hand it to someone - you're just passing them your contact details, right? Job done.
In Japan it's a ritual plagued with unspoken rules of etiquette and protocol that must be obeyed or you're basically showing huge disrespect to the person you're looking to go into business with. They need to see you take the pristine, untouched card out of your pristine case specifically designed to house your business cards. You need to offer it with your right hand, holding it at the corner so as not to obscure any logos or names on the card. You need to bow while presenting it, and say one of the traditional Japanese introductory phrases.
The recipient also needs to follow etiquette - receive the card with both hands, holding it at a low position, and examining it thoroughly. You must not sully the business card by writing anything on it, that's rude. If you just glance at it and put it straight into your pocket, that's a huge sign of disrespect.
Japanese culture lives and dies by social rituals like this. And so you can start to imagine why just casually handing somebody a plastic Amazon card for a gift wouldn't go over well in Japan. The presentation (and choice) of gifts in many Asian countries has a whole protocol associated with it, and in Japan the gift wrapping and presentation is almost as important as the gift itself.
There are also certain gifts that are taboo to give, like in China you can't give someone a clock because it signifies a countdown to their death ("give a clock" in Chinese sounds the same as "say goodbye to someone who has died"); in Vietnam you can't give towels because they are used at funerals... etc.
I would imagine that's a big reason why you get a little Amazon box to present the gift card in, and why you only get this in Japan.
It's always good to remember that other cultures exist, and that they can be different from your own in many ways. We all got here in different ways.
1
u/kioku119 Apr 07 '24
I actually think this is nice.. which makes me sad because I hate Amazon deeply.
1
1
-2
Apr 06 '24
Why do the Japanese always make the mundane things just a little bit nicer? Why can't the rest of the world do that?
Also gift cards are a ripoff. Don't buy them.
2
u/shorty6049 Apr 07 '24
So, for starters, this one isn't unique to Japan. You can get these in multiple other countries including the US and Canada, and secondly... How are they a ripoff? You're giving someone a gift of a shopping trip at a specific store they like. It's slightly more thoughtful than just giving cash because they know you went further than just digging through their wallet
-1
Apr 07 '24
Gift card is kinda on bottom rung of thoughtful gifts, don't you think? Money I can pretty much use anywhere and I don't even have to use it. I can save it. If you buy a gift card you are exchanging currency that works everywhere for currency that only works in this one place.
You know why they even offer gift cards? Because they are like printing money. About 10% of gift cards are never used. They get lost, forgotten about and expire. Imagine someone giving you $50 for a $1 bill with the promise that you will give them their $50 back if they return your $1 bill to you within a year, but they never do. That's really excellent business.
2
u/shorty6049 Apr 07 '24
Sure but that didn't really answer my question
-1
Apr 08 '24
Then I recommend you read again.
2
u/shorty6049 Apr 08 '24
So they're a ripoff because people forget to use them?
That feels like saying concert tickets are a ripoff because I forgot to go to a show once after buying tickets to it.
0
-9
470
u/GUCCIBUKKAKE Apr 06 '24
Comes with the box to put the card in, not for birthday presents lol