The rituals and mantras are integral to the Book‘s success, says Mindy Godding, a tidying expert of 20 years and president of NAPO (the National Association of Productivity and Organising Professionals). “I think people found them very soothing, like a balm,” she tells the . “For someone overwhelmed by chaos and clutter, the essence of calm and serenity Marie Kondo portrays – and her simple routines – can be intoxicating.”
That success rests on results, however, like the thousands of “before” and “after” tidying pictures and videos of excess and mess transformed into havens of tranquility. Her reality TV series, Tidying Up With Marie Kondo, showcased those transformations, in which Kondo’s petite (4ft 8in) figure at the start of the episode was invariably overshadowed by mountains of mess, clothes and objects. She soon brought order to the chaos. Her secret weapon, said a review of the Netflix series, was she: “dispenses benedictions and prescriptions, not judgment” and “there are no real heroes or villains. Just an awareness of a consumer culture run amok”.
Launched on 1 January 2019, the Netflix series ramped up Kondo’s global reach – and influence. Charity shops in the UK and US reported spikes in donations; and stores had record-breaking sales of storage items, as customers rushed to join the tidying movement. “The popularity of Marie Kondo showcasing how best to ‘declutter’ your home has had a huge influence on our customers,” said a spokesperson for UK department store John Lewis.
Tidying got political in September 2023, when Kondo joined the likes of Bill Gates and Al Gore at Climate Forward. Invited to discuss “Can a tidy house save the world?”, and share her thoughts about over-consumption and excess, she recapped her life message: pause to buy only things you love and need. When she was criticised for adding to the mountain of rubbish by selling products through her website, she replied: “Certain items do provide us happiness and can energise us. I truly believe in the energy items can provide.”
How does she feel about being called the “tidying guru who transformed modern minimalism”? She pauses: “I’m not sure I can take any credit [for that], it’s humbling you even draw a link. I think while each movement has its own ideology, there are shared ideas and goals… the fact people are taking steps in that direction is wonderful.”
In truth, tidying is big business, with the home organisation industry valued at $15.2bn in 2023, and expected to grow at a rate of 4.7% between 2024 and 2031.
Her legacy, she says, is in the army of of KonMari consultants she has trained – now 900 plus across more than 60 countries. She is currently writing a book on Japanese culture today. “My philosophy and methods are deeply influenced by Japanese history and culture, and writing it will be an exercise for me in exploring and understanding those links.”
Kondo is married to Takumi Kawahara, CEO of her company, and the couple has three children. Since the birth of their third child, a son, in 2021, she has had less time for tidying. She recently told Sky News: “I’m not perfect, I never was,” and admitted to The Telegraph: “My home is messy now I have children.”
“It dawned on me I didn’t have the same time to tidy up perfectly as I used to – you can’t always maintain the perfect space at any given moment,” she says. But she had found truth in the aphorism that your children teach you how to live: “I asked myself, ‘What does spark joy in my life?’, and my answer was right in front of me.”
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