In every country, there are sub-cultures who define themselves through fashion. The West has goths, hippies and grunge, for example. Japan has gals.
每一个国家都有一些边缘文化通过时尚来标榜自己。西方有哥特派、嬉皮士和垃圾摇滚，而日本有非主流Garu。
They are young girls who look, act and speak very differently from the traditional image of Japanese women.
这些年轻的女孩论丛打扮、举止还是说话的方式上都和传统的日本女性形象有很大不同。
Since they emerged as a group the mid-90s, their looks have evolved. But a few elements have remained constant - short skirts, massive heels and big, big eyes.
这群女孩子被人们称为“90中”，她们在外形上有了很多进步。但是有些元素并没有改变，比如超短裙、超高跟和画的大大的眼睛。
This type of rebellion has been frowned on in the past. But now these gals are being courted - for their spending power, their adventurous mindset and even as a cultural export.
这种叛逆的造型曾经在过去饱受诟病。但如今，社会上却对这样的女孩大加赞赏，因为她们有强大的购买力，她们敢于冒险的思想甚至成为一种输出文化。
Their fashion went through various stages - big socks, foot-high wedge heels, silver hair, deep bronze skin.
这些ga ru （girl这个词的日语发音）生于日本经济鼎盛的时期，这些都市少女们吃穿不愁，喜欢出位。她们的时尚标志经历了几个阶段：长袜子、一英尺高的坡跟鞋、银色头发和小麦色肌肤。
The wildest of all was a group called Yamamba, who wore large circles of unnaturally white eyeshadow, giving a reverse panda-eye effect.
其中最狂野的一群人被称作Yamamba，她们画着极不自然的白色眼影，看起来就像是熊猫眼的反转效果。
'Half or full?'
"半Garu还是全Garu？“
Some women espoused their gal-ness more than others. Mihoko Nishii, of Japan's largest advertising group Dentsu, said studies show that about 12% of women aged between 18 and 34 are real gals.
有些女性特别支持这种流行趋势。日本最大的广告集团Dentsu的Mihoko Nishii告诉我们，调查显示，在18到34岁之间的日本女性中，有12%属于真正的Garu。”
"But more than half of the women we surveyed are what we call 'pa gal' (half gal), who share similar perspectives, " she said.
“但是，有一多半被访者都属于‘半Garu’，她们身上会有一些共性。“她说道。
"They may not look like gals but they also want to make their eyes look bigger and they like bling products, " she explained.
”她们可能看起来不像Garu，但是她们希望眼睛能看起来大一些，而且她们喜欢闪闪发光的东西“她解释道。
Take coloured contact lenses and fake eyelashes as examples. Initially gals' secret weapons, they have since been adopted by many ordinary women.
由于Garu一族总是掀起时尚的潮流，很多公司都善于利用这一点。以彩色美瞳片和假睫毛为例，一开始这些只是Garu们的秘密武器，但现在很多普通女性也在使用。
The popularity of non-prescription coloured contacts even became a national issue in 2008, when hundreds of cases of eye damage were reported to opticians, resulting in new government regulations.
没有医生处方的美瞳镜片广泛流行，甚至在2008年成为全国的热点事件。几百宗由于美瞳镜片导致的眼睛损害病例被曝光，所以政府不得不出台新的管理规定。
So gals, once viewed with suspicion as rule-breakers, are now in high demand for marketing purposes.
曾经被认作是”规矩破坏者“的Garu一族现在已经成为商家们营销的目标。
Gal-mama are young mothers who refuse to shed their gal-ness. They are the latest trend in this evolving culture and have made the fashion industry realise that gal fashion may not be just a youth fad.
”Garu妈妈“是指已经做了母亲，但不愿放弃Garu气质的年轻女性。在Garu文化中，她们代表最新的风潮，也让时尚产业意识到Garu不仅仅属于少女。
"We are using gal-mama, instead of models, to promote our products because customers can relate to them more, " said Eri Kato of Five Gate, which sells coloured contact lenses.
”我们请garu妈妈，而不请模特来推销我们的产品，因为这更容易让消费者感同身受，”美瞳品牌Five Gate的Eri Kato说。
Companies that make maternity and children's goods are also keen to get their opinions on new products.
生产母婴产品的公司也非常关注这群人对产品的看法。
"They really think outside the box, " said Ayako Yamashita, editor of I Love Mama magazine, which features gal-mama.
“她们总能有不拘一格的想法”《我爱妈妈》杂志的编辑Ayako Yamashita说道。她曾经写过关于Garu妈妈的专题。
"For example, they would suggest black toys with some pink bling for babies when these products are traditionally in vivid or pastel colours, " she said with a laugh.
“比如说，她们建议制造黑色的，带粉钻的玩具给宝宝。但是以往这些玩具都使用明快的蜡笔色” Ayako笑着说。
"But they sell very well even among ordinary mothers, so companies see them as innovators."
“但这些产品也很受普通妈妈的喜爱，所以商家都把Garu妈妈看作是创新的力量。”
Changing tastes
改变品味
Gals' spending power has been in the spotlight before. Their desire to keep up with the latest fad meant that they spent a lot of money on clothes and shoes.
商家非常关注garu的购买力。她们对潮流的追逐意味着她们会在衣服和鞋子上花费巨资。
"Their fashions changed very fast, and gals followed each trend religiously, " said Nobuko Yabe of gals' magazine Popteen.
“她们的潮流变得非常快，garu们像信奉宗教一样跟随每一次潮流变化“《Popteen》杂志的一篇文章Nobu Ko Yabe of gals这样说道。
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