- Pre-wedding Photography Services in Japan Now Easier to Search, Helping to Further Vitalize Mutual Exchange in Asia -

On December 17, the Zexy bridal information magazine planned and produced by Recruit Marketing Partners Co., Ltd. released "Zexy You I", a website for searching for information in Chinese on wedding ceremony and reception services, focusing on popular pre-wedding photography services in Japan and targeted at couples in Taiwan and Hong Kong.

"Zexy You I" further vitalizes international exchange:

Pre-wedding photography is quite popular in many regions of Asia. For instance, 95% of couples in Hong Kong have had pre-wedding photography taken; and 45% of those couples have had two or more photo sessions. Asia itself ranks as a top location for pre-wedding photography, with Hong Kong in the top rank, followed by Taiwan, mainland China, South Korea, and Japan. This pre-wedding photography provides an opportunity for interaction between couples in Asia (*1). We have started "Zexy You I" as a service to further vitalize this kind of exchange, making it easier to search for information regarding pre-wedding photography in Japan.

The number of tourists visiting Japan continues to grow. The Japanese government's goal is to increase this number from 10 million visitors in 2013 to 20 million visitors in 2020 (*2). Over 5,000 couples from countries and regions such as Taiwan and Hong Kong came to Japan for pre-wedding photography in 2014, and this number is expected to continue to rise. However, one problem that couples had was that there was no service to compare and research information on different pre-wedding photography and wedding ceremony services in Japan. The "Zexy You I" service was started to fulfill these needs, initially targeting couples in Taiwan and Hong Kong.

This service is operated by Zexy, a brand that has published a bridal information magazine covering information on weddings and pre-wedding photo shoots in Japan since 1993. Zexy is known by 92.8% (*3) of people in Japan searching for information on weddings. Zexy publishes "Zexy Overseas Wedding" three times a year in support of Japanese couples that wish to hold their wedding ceremonies outside Japan.

Service overview:

- Period of service: Thursday, Dec 17, 2015, through Thursday, March 31, 2016

- Service name: "Zexy You I"

- URL: http://zexy-youi.com

- Language: Chinese (traditional)

- Usage fees: Free

- Devices supported: Web browsers on PCs, smartphones, and tablets

- Target: Couples in Taiwan and Hong Kong

- Content offered: Photo gallery, introduction to photography plan, experience report and more

During the service period, Japanese clients that are able to handle prospective couples from overseas will participate. For future expansion, we intend to offer a wide range of information regarding wedding ceremonies and receptions in addition to pre-wedding photography. We also intend to expand our targets to China and other countries and regions. By studying how to further support the translation and interpretation into different languages using our proprietary technologies in cooperation with Recruit Communications Co., Ltd., we will create an organization to offer service in Japan with a minimum of stress.

(*1) Source: "Wedding Spending Survey 2014," ESDlife

(*2) Source: "2015 Action Program toward the Realization of Japan as a Tourism-Oriented Country," Japan Tourism Agency

(*3) Source: Zexy Campaign Trace survey of women aged 16 - 39 (held in 2014 on 2,319 samples)

About Recruit Marketing Partners Co., Ltd.

Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo

President and representative director: Fumihiro Yamaguchi