Japanese people, especially the youth, don’t just feel lonely in real life. Even on social media, where you can connect with the whole world, loneliness still lingers.
In recent years, a unique service has been booming in Japan for anyone wanting to make an impression online: “Fake Friend Rentals.”
According to The Japan Times, the demand for renting fake friends on social media has surged. One standout company is Family Romance, which offers services to boost your online presence and make your social accounts livelier than ever.
Their most popular package is called “Real Appeal,” which focuses on polishing your social media image.
Once you pay, a group of fake friends, good-looking guys and girls, will appear in your photos to help you shine online.
Almost no one will realize these friends are rented, unless someone else happens to rent the same people for their photos.
Japan Informer reports there’s no limit on how many fake friends you can rent. You can hire as many as you want, as long as you have the budget.
The starting price for this service is 8,000 yen (about 1.7 million VND), not including travel and accommodation costs. Customers can choose the age, gender, and other traits of their rented friends.
Besides the Real Appeal package, customers can also rent “fake parents” for 20,000 yen each (around 4.3 million VND).
Maki Abe, manager of Family Romance, shared that last year her company fulfilled over 20 fake friend rental requests. For example, she once organized a party with 100% fake female guests for a wealthy but lonely guy.
