Thread by @Independent

Meet the Japanese man paid to do nothing independent.co.uk/life-style/jap…

For years, there’s been a cottage industry in Japan and South Korea of renting strangers to impersonate friends, family members or other acquaintances, as a way to save face at social functions where plus-ones are expected

But over the past four years, Shoji Morimoto has built a cult following by offering himself as a warm body who can simply be there

Morimoto’s gigs have been varied:

🩺 He listens to healthcare workers describe the mental health toll of the pandemic
🏃‍♀️ He waited at the finish line of a marathon for a client who wanted to see a familiar face at the end of the race

🖊️ One woman hired him to accompany her as she filed her divorce papers
🏥 He once sat with a client for a haemorrhoid surgery consultation

Morimoto often finds that his clients don’t want to burden people they care about with their needs

“Even if people look normal and fine on the surface, they often have shocking pasts or secrets, or impossible problems,” he says

“People who come to me with crazy problems, they’re usually not people who look like they’re suffering. Everyone, even the ones that seem well, all have their own sets of problems and secrets.”

Read the full story: independent.co.uk/life-style/jap…