Gashapon capsule toy shop in Manila has fans flocking

Store is Japanese toymaker Bandai's first in the Philippines

20240221N Bandai capsule toy

Gashapon machines at the Mitsukoshi BGC shopping mall in Manila. The capsules that customers draw at random contain characters from popular Japanese anime and games. (Photo by Yuichi Shiga)

YUICHI SHIGA, Nikkei staff writer

MANILA -- Since opening in Manila last November, Bandai's official store selling Gashapon capsule toys continues abuzz with fans, as the concept opens a novel avenue for extending Japan's soft power through content.

The Gashapon shop, located on the second floor of the newly opened Mitsukoshi BGC Japanese-themed shopping mall, has roughly 300 capsule toy machines for customers to choose from. This is the first official Gashapon shop that Japanese toymaker Bandai has opened in the Philippines, following locations in Singapore and Thailand.

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