Pot-bellied Japanese security guards reach TikTok stardom

They’re your run-of-the-mill Japanese “salarymen,” hard-working, pot-bellied, friendly and, well, rather regular. But the chief executive and general manager at a tiny Japanese security company are among the nation’s biggest TikTok stars, drawing 2.7 million followers and 54 million likes, and honored with awards as a trend-setter on the video-sharing app. Daikyo Security Co.’s account, which gathers goofy dances, gobbled instant noodles and other everyday fare, is the brainchild of the company president. Despite his unpretentious demeanor, Daisuke Sakurai is dead serious about not only enhancing brand power but also recruiting young people to his company, a challenge he sees as a matter of survival. Founded in 1967, Daikyo has 85 employees, 10 of them working at the headquarters office, tucked away on the second floor of an obscure building in a downtown Tokyo alley. “Our job is among those labeled ‘Three-K’ in Japan,” Sakurai said, referring to “kitsui, kitanai, kiken,” meanin
g, “hard, dirty and dangerous.” A common job for Daikyo guards is to work at construction sites, directing traffic with a flashing stick, making sure the trucks come and go safely without running over pedestrians. It’s not a job that requires overly special skills, but no one wants to stand around outdoors for hours. As many as 99 security companies are fighting over every recruit, in contrast to two potential employers for office clerks, Sakurai said. And this is in rapidly aging Japan, where every sector is suffering a labor shortage. So why not turn to social media, the place where youngsters supposedly flock? Sakurai started posting on Twitter and Instagram. But it was when he went on TikTok that things went viral.