Who Is Marie Kondo?

Last updated: October 2026

Name (Japanese)	近藤麻理恵 (Kondō Marie)
Born	1984
Category	Author / Organizing consultant / TV personality
Active since	Around 2004 (founded her tidying consultancy at age 19)
Known for	The KonMari Method and the phrase "spark joy"
Platform	Books, Netflix series, KonMari.com
Latest book	Letter from Japan (2025)

Marie Kondo (近藤麻理恵, Kondō Marie) is a Japanese tidying expert, bestselling author, and television personality, best known as the creator of the KonMari Method — a system for decluttering your home by keeping only the things that “spark joy.” Her books have sold well over 10 million copies worldwide and have been translated into dozens of languages, turning a very Japanese approach to housekeeping into a global lifestyle movement.

Born in Japan in 1984, Kondo was obsessed with tidying from childhood and started her own organizing consultancy at age 19 while still a university student in Tokyo. After her first book became an international phenomenon in the mid-2010s, her 2019 Netflix series made her a household name in the English-speaking world, and TIME magazine named her one of the world’s 100 most influential people in 2015. Today she runs KonMari Media with her husband and CEO Takumi Kawahara, is a mother of three, and has shifted her focus from closets toward sharing Japanese culture and ways of living with international audiences.

Rise to Fame

Kondo studied sociology at Tokyo Woman’s Christian University, where she wrote her senior thesis on tidying. She also spent about five years working as a miko — a shrine maiden, or young female attendant at a Shinto shrine, Japan’s indigenous religion. That background shaped the almost ritual quality of her method, such as greeting a home before tidying it and thanking objects before letting them go.

After one of her clients suggested she write a book, Kondo took a roughly six-month course for aspiring authors and turned her method into a manuscript. The resulting book, published in Japan in 2011, became a sensation. Its English edition, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up (2014), reached No. 1 on The New York Times bestseller list and spread the KonMari Method across the world. A follow-up, Spark Joy (2016), added illustrated folding guides, and in 2016 her company began training and certifying KonMari consultants — a network that has since grown to more than 900 consultants worldwide.

The biggest leap came on January 1, 2019, when Netflix released Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, in which she helped American families declutter their homes. The series earned her an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Host and set off a wave of memes, thrift-store donations, and “spark joy” jokes. A second Netflix series, Sparking Joy with Marie Kondo, followed in 2021.

What Marie Kondo Is Known For

At the heart of her fame is the KonMari Method, which differs from ordinary decluttering advice in a few key ways:

Tidy by category, not by room — clothes first, then books, papers, komono (miscellaneous items), and finally sentimental items.
Keep only what “sparks joy.” The phrase translates the Japanese word tokimeki, which describes a flutter of excitement, and it became her signature idea.
Thank the items you discard before parting with them — a gesture rooted in the Japanese sense that objects deserve respect.

Beyond the method itself, she is known for her books — including Joy at Work (2020, co-written with organizational psychologist Scott Sonenshein) and Marie Kondo’s Kurashi at Home (2022) — and for KonMari Media, the company behind her consultant certification program, online shop, and courses. Her name even became a verb in English: to “Marie Kondo” your belongings means to ruthlessly declutter them.

Recent Years

In early 2023, Kondo made headlines worldwide when she told reporters, while promoting Kurashi at Home, that she had “kind of given up” on keeping her own house perfectly tidy after the birth of her third child. The remark was widely framed as a surrender, but her actual point was about kurashi — a Japanese word meaning “way of living” — and choosing to spend her time with her children rather than on constant tidying. She has continued her work since.

In January 2025 she launched the KonMari Club, a year-long online program applying her philosophy to different areas of life. In October 2025 she published Letter from Japan, an essay collection written with her longtime interpreter Marie Iida that explores the Japanese traditions and values behind her approach — a clear pivot from tidying guru to cultural ambassador.

As of October 2026, Kondo remains very active. In 2026 her company held a KonMari retreat in Japan, with itineraries visiting Ise — home of one of Shinto’s most important shrines — and the historic city of Kanazawa, and Kondo herself joining participants for select experiences. She has also introduced The Art of Tokimeki, a new KonMari project described as teaching the skill of sparking joy, and she is scheduled to speak about Letter from Japan at Asia Society Texas in Houston on November 3, 2026.

FAQ

What does "spark joy" actually mean?

It is the English translation of the Japanese word tokimeki, which describes a flutter or thrill of excitement. In the KonMari Method, you hold each item and keep it only if it gives you that feeling — everything else is thanked and let go.

Did Marie Kondo give up on tidying?

No. In 2023 she said she had "kind of given up" on keeping her own home perfectly tidy after her third child was born, explaining that spending time with her children mattered more at that stage of life. She has continued publishing books and running KonMari programs since.

What is Marie Kondo doing now (2026)?

She runs the year-long KonMari Club, hosts retreat experiences in Japan through her company, and is promoting Letter from Japan, her 2025 essay collection about Japanese culture. She has also introduced a new project, The Art of Tokimeki, and is scheduled to speak at Asia Society Texas in Houston in November 2026.