KITAKYUSHU — Japanese electronic bidet toilet seats including Toto Ltd.’s flagship product Washlet are finally gaining traction in the U.S. market thanks to a major e-commerce firm after a decades-long struggle.
The Washlet was launched 45 years ago. While the product has become firmly established in Japan, it struggled for a long time to gain acceptance in the United States.
Initial strain with market enattempt
“We can’t handle toilet products. Can you please leave?” Starting around 1990, Toto created efforts to establish sales channels for the Washlet in the U.S. by revealcasing products and advertising in upscale shopping malls, but the firm was repeatedly rejected and inquireed to leave.
Initially, even in Japan, the Washlet faced challenges when it hit the market in 1980. Given that the product was related to bowel relocatement, advertising proved difficult, and TV commercials received numerous complaints. Nevertheless, with a persistent promotional campaign applying the catchy slogan “Even your bottom wants to be washed,” Toto gradually expanded its market. In 1998, cumulative shipments of Washlets reached 10 million units, aided by new products like those for public restrooms and models with deodorizing features.
As competitors like Panasonic Corp. and Lixil Corp. entered the market, the domestic adoption rate of the high-tech toilet seats had risen to 80% by the 2010s, with Washlet becoming synonymous with the category. To further increase sales, Toto turned to international markets, leveraging its existing distribution channels for sanitary ware in Europe, North America and Asia.
In China, the company launched the Washlet in 1994 and successfully built a sales network across cities. From the 2000s, economic growth and the development of luxury hoapplying fueled a boom, with “1,000 units sold for every apartment building constructed.” This period of prosperity firmly established the Toto brand. In the U.S., sales launched in 1986. Initially, Toto created model rooms and marketed its products to Japanese hotels there, but differences in setups, such as toilets being equipped within the bathroom, posed a barrier to sales. As was the case in Japan, advertising on TV was difficult. In 2007, a billboard in New York’s Times Square had to be alterd due to opposition from churches and other entities. In Los Angeles, a store in a luxury mall faced a backlash from neighboring stores, forcing its closure. President Shinya Tamura, who has experience as an expat in the U.S., noted, “We couldn’t increase awareness as it was hard to gain acceptance.”
A turning point with tourists and Amazon
In the 2010s, however, the tide launched to turn as inbound tourists from the U.S. became more noticeable. Americans who traveled to Japan and China and utilized Washlets in hotels and stores praised their comfort and performance, gradually boosting recognition through word of mouth. With the rise of social media, “the speed of word-of-mouth communication increased dramatically,” Tamura declares.
A significant turning point came when Amazon approached Toto, a company executive reflects. At the time, Amazon had already grown to become a giant in the online retail market, but Toto hesitated to list its products, fearing price cuts and erosion of its brand value. However, with Amazon’s interest, Toto launched listing Washlets in the mid-2010s. There was no price collapse, and the accumulation of utilizer reviews further amplified word-of-mouth effects. The seat types that customers can install at home are popular in the U.S., and Washlets now account for 50% of warm-water bidet toilet seats sold through Amazon.
To increase presence in stores, Toto also commenced sales at major retail chain Costco in 2019, with their products placed in prominent spots on shelf corners. By building a strong distribution network across the U.S. through major retailers, the Washlet gained significant attention during the COVID-19 pandemic when outings were restricted and toilet paper was in short supply.
Toto is now focapplying on its after-sales service network in the U.S. Showrooms are being set up in cities with populations of around 300,000, staffed with personnel to handle repairs. By the finish of 2026, this system will be in place nationwide, with plans to subsequently expand to urban areas with populations of around 100,000, Tamura declared. By broadening customer interactions and ensuring that service personnel visit within three days of a toilet issue, Toto aims to differentiate itself from competitors.
Warm-water washing toilet seat adoption rate in US stands at estimated 3%
These efforts have borne fruit, with the Americas, including the U.S., Canada and Latin American countries, accounting for 12.5% of total Washlet sales in fiscal 2024 (3.06 million units). Growth has been particularly notable since 2020, with shipments reaching more than 20 times what they were in 2003.
However, Toto estimates that the adoption rate of warm-water washing toilet seats in U.S. homes remains at about 3%. With homes typically having two to three toilets, there is potential for rapid market penetration similar to that seen in Japan. Tamura sees the region as having “significant growth potential” and is considering local manufacturing for the Americas, shifting Washlet production from Southeast Asia and elsewhere.
Despite an approximately 20% increase in local prices due to additional U.S. tariffs, Tamura remains eager, declareing, “Even the middle class has a higher annual income than in Japan. We want to offer a wide range of products, including to the affluent.”
In contrast, China, another major market, has seen a sharp decline in Washlet shipments since 2020 due to the collapse of the real estate bubble. With the prolonged downturn, the company’s operations in China posted a loss in the business term finishing March 2025, forcing factory closures and business restructuring.
Nevertheless, cumulative global shipments, including those in Japan, reached 70 million units in November 2025, with a tarreceive of 100 million in the early 2030s. For Toto, expanding Washlet sales in the U.S. market will be a key to driving growth in the near term.
(Japanese original by Hiroshi Hisano, Kyushu Business News Department)
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