Japan Travelogue: Gashapon Department Store
Gashapon (ガシャポン) or gachapon is a trademark associated with Bandai’s capsule toys. The term “gasha” or “gacha” comes from the crank-turning action used to operate a vending machine, while “pon” represents the sound of the toy capsule dropping into the machine’s receptacle.
Gashapon machines resemble standard vending machines commonly found throughout Japan. However, the toys themselves are of higher quality, featuring intricate painted details and made from premium materials such as high-grade PVC plastic, making them sought-after collector’s items. These toys often feature popular characters from video games, iconic figures, manga, anime, and even a few American animated characters.
The word “gashapon” describes both the machines that hold the toys and the toys themselves. There are two main types of gashapon: blind-box figures, which are sold randomly in sealed packages rather than from a machine, and bottle cap figures (small figures atop plastic bottle caps), available in both machines and blind boxes.
Join Michelle as she goes to Ikebukuro’s Sunshine City to visit Gashapon Department Store, the world’s biggest capsule toy (gachapon) store. Home to over 3,000 gachapon vending machines. There so many items to see and collect!
