# Marie Kondo
**Marie Kondo** (近藤麻理恵, Kondō Marie) is a Japanese tidying consultant, author, and television personality who created the KonMari method of home organization and became internationally known through her bestselling book *The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up* and the Netflix series *[Tidying Up with Marie Kondo](https://www.edgepedia.org/tidying-up-with-marie-kondo)*.[1](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n2014025714.html) • [2](https://konmari.com/about-marie-kondo/) The Library of Congress authority record gives her [Japanese name](https://www.edgepedia.org/japanese-name) as Kondō Marie, printed 近藤 麻理恵, and identifies her as the author of the original Japanese edition of the book.[1](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n2014025714.html) Newsweek reports she was born Kondo Mariko in Tokyo; no other retrieved record gives a birth given name, and the Library of Congress lists only the pen name.[3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Native name | Kondō Marie (近藤 麻理恵), per Library of Congress authority record[1](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n2014025714.html) |
| Origin of the method | Founded her tidying consultant business at 19 while studying sociology at Tokyo Woman's Christian University in Tokyo[4](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/jan/08/marie-kondo-owe-my-parents-items-i-threw-out) |
| Signature book | *The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up*, published in Japan in 2011 and in the United States in 2014; 150 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, more than 14 million copies in 44 languages[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell) • [3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621) |
| Core criterion | Keep only items that "spark joy"; tidy by category, not location, in the order clothes, books, papers, komono, sentimental items[3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621) • [6](https://konmari.com/what-is-konmari-method/) |
| Netflix debut | *Tidying Up with Marie Kondo*, launched 1 January 2019; Netflix's #1 non-fiction release of 2019 with seven award nominations[2](https://konmari.com/about-marie-kondo/) |
| Consultant network | More than 400 consultants in 43 countries by 2020; 900-plus across more than 60 countries by January 2025[7](https://hbr.org/2020/05/lifes-work-an-interview-with-marie-kondo) • [5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell) |
| Recognition | One of Time magazine's 100 most influential people in 2015[2](https://konmari.com/about-marie-kondo/) |
## Early life and career in Japan
Kondo was born in Tokyo. As a child she searched homemaking magazines for new ways to organize and practiced her tidying techniques at a nearby [Shinto shrine](https://www.edgepedia.org/shinto-shrine) where she volunteered; she spent her 18th birthday in the national library reading organizational books.[3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621) She studied sociology at Tokyo Woman's Christian University, and tidying was the subject of her college thesis, titled "How to Declutter Your Apartment — From a Sociological Perspective".[4](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/jan/08/marie-kondo-owe-my-parents-items-i-threw-out) • [3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621)
**From student consultant to full-time business.** She launched her tidying consulting business at 19, while still a university student in Tokyo.[4](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/jan/08/marie-kondo-owe-my-parents-items-i-threw-out) • [2](https://konmari.com/about-marie-kondo/) After a postcollege stint at a staffing agency, where she organized her clients' desks, she went full-time and soon had a six-month waiting list.[3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621) • [7](https://hbr.org/2020/05/lifes-work-an-interview-with-marie-kondo) It was during this period that she developed the motto "Keep only what sparks joy".[7](https://hbr.org/2020/05/lifes-work-an-interview-with-marie-kondo)
## The KonMari method
The KonMari method prescribes tidying by category, not by location, in a fixed order: clothes first, then books, papers, komono (miscellaneous items), and finally sentimental items.[3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621) The official method description explains the reasoning: by starting with the easiest category, you hone your decision-making skills and clarify what sparks joy.[6](https://konmari.com/what-is-konmari-method/) The method lists six basic rules of tidying, including "Finish discarding first" and "Ask yourself if it sparks joy".[3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621)
**Spark joy.** The method's single selection criterion is keeping items that "spark joy", and it is designed to prevent reverting to clutter.[2](https://konmari.com/about-marie-kondo/) According to BBC Culture, the rule originated from a tidying session so intense it made Kondo faint, after which she resolved to find reasons to keep items rather than discard them.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell) The method is framed as choosing what to keep, not what to get rid of.[6](https://konmari.com/what-is-konmari-method/)
**Folding.** Kondo's folding technique creases folds into tight thirds so garments can be stood up and arranged vertically in drawers.[3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621)
## Books and international breakthrough
The original Japanese edition of *The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up* was published in Japan in 2011.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell) The United States edition followed in 2014.[3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621) The book spent 150 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and has been translated into 44 languages, with more than 14 million copies sold; the Guardian reported more than 13 million copies as of January 2022, and the figure has since risen.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell) • [4](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/jan/08/marie-kondo-owe-my-parents-items-i-threw-out) Kondo has authored nine books in Japanese on tidying and organization.[2](https://konmari.com/about-marie-kondo/) *Spark Joy* followed in 2016, and *Joy at Work* addresses organization at the office.[3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621) • [7](https://hbr.org/2020/05/lifes-work-an-interview-with-marie-kondo) Time records her as the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the book, which was also a best seller in Japan, Germany, and the UK, and named her one of Time's 100 Most Influential People of 2015.[8](https://time.com/author/marie-kondo/)
## Television and Netflix
*Tidying Up with Marie Kondo* launched on Netflix on 1 January 2019. It was Netflix's #1 non-fiction release in 2019 and earned seven award nominations: two Emmys, three Critics Choice Awards, one Realscreen Award, and one TCA Award.[2](https://konmari.com/about-marie-kondo/) A Stanford academic session on KonMari's worldwide rise looked at how Kondo built on her popularity in Japan to achieve international renown, with her husband Takumi Kawahara serving as a central producer, and how she used Netflix and YouTube to overcome a cultural barrier in the United States that had kept many Japanese creators from attaining New York Times bestseller status, a hit Netflix show, and [Time 100](https://www.edgepedia.org/time-100) recognition.[9](https://aparc.fsi.stanford.edu/japan/events/joy-across-pacific-how-konmari-became-global-success)
## KonMari Media and business ventures
Kondo is the founder of KonMari Media, Inc., according to her US publisher [Penguin Random House](https://www.edgepedia.org/penguin-random-house), which also identifies her as a tidying expert and #1 New York Times bestselling author.[10](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/222813/marie-kondo/) The company runs a consultant certification program with tiers ranging from Certified Green (10 tidying sessions with two clients) to Certified Master (500 tidying sessions with 50 clients).[3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621) By 2020 the program had certified more than 400 consultants in 43 countries; by January 2025 Kondo had trained 900-plus consultants across more than 60 countries.[7](https://hbr.org/2020/05/lifes-work-an-interview-with-marie-kondo) • [5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell) The brand also sells "Hikidashi Boxes" in four themes: balance, harmony, clarity, and wonder.[3](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621)
## Reception and cultural impact
The Netflix series ramped up Kondo's global reach. Charity shops in the UK and US reported spikes in donations after the 1 January 2019 launch, and storage-item sales reached record levels; BBC Culture estimates her net worth at $8m.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell) "To kondo" has become a verb.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell)
On the psychology of clutter, research cited by Libby Sander of Bond University suggests that clutter can affect concentration and sleep; the cited research links visual reminders of disorganization with reduced ability to focus and cluttered bedrooms with sleep problems.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell)
## By the numbers
- More than 14 million copies of *The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up* sold in 44 languages.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell)
- 150 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell)
- 900-plus certified KonMari consultants across more than 60 countries as of January 2025, up from more than 400 in 43 countries in 2020.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell) • [7](https://hbr.org/2020/05/lifes-work-an-interview-with-marie-kondo)
- The home organization industry was valued at $15.2bn in 2023, with expected growth of 4.7% between 2024 and 2031.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell)
- Estimated net worth of $8m.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell)
## What has changed since 2023
Tidying took on an environmental dimension in September 2023, when Kondo joined figures including [Bill Gates](https://www.edgepedia.org/bill-gates) and [Al Gore](https://www.edgepedia.org/al-gore) at Climate Forward to discuss over-consumption.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell) As of January 2025, she was reported to be writing a book on Japanese culture today.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell) Her consultant network has continued to expand, reaching 900-plus trained consultants across more than 60 countries by January 2025.[5](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell)
## References
1. [Kondō, Marie — Library of Congress Name Authority Record](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n2014025714.html)
2. [About Marie Kondo — KonMari Media official website](https://konmari.com/about-marie-kondo/)
3. [Who Is Marie Kondo? The Origins of the KonMari Method, Her Bestselling Book and Netflix Series — Newsweek](https://www.newsweek.com/who-marie-kondo-konmari-method-1288621)
4. [Marie Kondo: 'My greatest achievement? Organising the world' — The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/jan/08/marie-kondo-owe-my-parents-items-i-threw-out)
5. [The superstar tidying guru who transformed our homes — BBC Culture](https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20250114-how-marie-kondos-life-changing-magic-cast-its-spell)
6. [Why the KonMari Method Works — KonMari official website](https://konmari.com/what-is-konmari-method/)
7. [Life's Work: An Interview with Marie Kondo — Harvard Business Review](https://hbr.org/2020/05/lifes-work-an-interview-with-marie-kondo)
8. [Marie Kondo — TIME author page](https://time.com/author/marie-kondo/)
9. [Sparking Joy Across the Pacific: How KonMari Became a Global Success — Stanford FSI](https://aparc.fsi.stanford.edu/japan/events/joy-across-pacific-how-konmari-became-global-success)
10. [Marie Kondo — Penguin Random House author page](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/222813/marie-kondo/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Unscripted, reality, and web-native series › Documentary, docudrama, and lifestyle series › Lifestyle, makeover, and home factual series*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license