In the 1970s, Nestlé entered the Japanese market expecting an easy win. Instead, the company racked up heavy losses. There were almost no buyers.
Back in the 1930s, coffee had been popular in Japan. But during World War II it was banned, and the drink quickly faded from memory. Coffee culture only started to recover in the 1960s, and for most Japanese it was still a completely unfamiliar product. Nestlé’s usual tricks (promotions, discounts, and heavy advertising) didn’t work. People might try coffee once, but they rarely came back.
French psychoanalyst Clotaire Rapaille later explained why. Taste preferences are shaped in childhood. Adults don’t just choose products for flavor; they choose them because of the positive emotions and memories attached. The Japanese had zero emotional connection to coffee, so the drink never stuck.
Rapaille advised Nestlé to stop selling coffee for a while and focus on children instead. The company launched a line of coffee-flavored candies (completely caffeine-free) featuring popular Japanese cartoon characters on the packaging. A whole generation grew up associating that rich coffee taste with happy childhood memories.
When Nestlé finally brought real coffee back to store shelves in the mid-1980s, Japan was ready. The country went on to become one of the world’s biggest coffee consumers.