Self confession. I hate cleaning. Every time mum comes over to my flat the first thing I hear is “Why your place so messy one?”. Even though I’ve made an effort to make it look at least half decent and relatively presentable, to me anyway. Dad would just give me a half joking, mostly judgemental look going “kitane~na~” (Japanese for “so~dirty~”) to echo mum.

I’m sure the above scenario is not stranger to most people, albeit in different languages perhaps. Wherever in the world you are, you probably have nagging parents telling you to “clean your room!” every time they get a peek of your living spaces.

It’s no surprise that there’s close to what is akin to a cult following for Marie Kondo, a well known organising consultant (“guru” if you’d like), and a well published author teaching tips and tricks to get tidy. Her latest armoury is an app. “KonMari” was launched a few months ago and provides organising tips, as well as providing a social platform for her followers as well as share before/after pictures.

Kondo’s most well known book, “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing”, was originally published in Japanese and has since been translated to more than 40 languages, selling over 7 million copies worldwide.

Her fan base is not only big, but also dedicated. Followers call themselves “Konverts”, with those who have successfully implemented her teachings describing themselves as having “Kondoed” their closets. In a different perspective, her influence has garnered enough attention she was one of the Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People list in 2015.

Kondo calls her method KonMari and has created an art out of folding clothes into optimal shapes for storage, with her followers finding philosophy in her writings about seeking a happier life with orderly in the home. While Kondo does frequent outside of Japan, she hopes to reach more audience with technology through her app.