A cheeky chap in Japan is earning a living by doing absolutely nothing. We know – it's the dream, right?
Shoji Morimoto, from Tokyo, has a very simple business plan which is explained on his Twitter account.
His bio said: "I will lend you a person (me) who does nothing… I can't do anything other than eating and drinking and responding very easily."
While it might seem a pointless endeavour, Shoji’s lacklustre sell is doing pretty well.
The 37-year-old has received upwards of 3,000 requests since he started renting himself out in 2018.
To start with, Shoji would do nothing with his customers for free.
But, when he realised he was sitting on a goldmine he began to charge 10,000 yen (£70) per request plus food and travel costs.
But, why would anyone pay him to simply hang out with them?
Well, apparently, sometimes he’s hired to up numbers at an event or in a gaming sesh.
Other times people just want some company over lunch or for someone to listen to them.
Speaking to The Mainichi, Shoji – who has a postgraduate degree in physics – said: "I'm not a friend or an acquaintance. I'm free of the bothersome things that accompany relationships, but can ease people's sense of loneliness. Maybe it's something like that for me.
"I myself don't like to be cheered on by others. I get upset when people simply tell me 'keep on trying'.
"When someone is trying to do something, I think the best thing to do is to help lower the bar for them by staying at their side."
The clever businessman has gathered more than 267,000 fans who follow him on Twitter.
One client said that she had employed him 10 times already – usually to stand near her when meeting a man for a first date and to discuss her views on love which she doesn’t feel comfortable doing with pals.
According to The Mainichi, she said: "It felt like a support to just have him by my side without forcing his opinions on me."
And, more customers are praising his services too.
One person wrote: "I'm glad I was able to take a walk with someone while keeping a comfortable distance, where we didn't have to talk but could if we wanted to."
Another said: "I had been slack about visiting the hospital, but I went because he came with me."
It’s kind of sweet, when you think about it…
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