Gundam Base at Daimaru Umeda for Expo & Blue Lock at Convenience Stores: Weekly Oshi News (Apr 4, 2025)

Here is our roundup of notable corporate oshikatsu (fan support activities) marketing and fan business news from the week of March 28 to April 3, 2025.

This Week’s Highlights

This week, companies were preparing intellectual property (IP) experiences ahead of the imminent opening of Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai.

BANDAI SPIRITS opened “THE GUNDAM BASE POP-UP WORLD TOUR in OSAKA” at the Daimaru Umeda department store in conjunction with the “GUNDAM NEXT FUTURE PAVILION” at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai. Spanning 923 square meters, it is one of the largest scales ever in the Kansai region. Capcom also exhibited the interactive attraction “Monster Hunter Bridge” free of charge inside the Expo venue.

IP merchandise sales also stood out at department stores and convenience stores. The Isetan Shinjuku department store held its collaboration with COJI-COJI for the second consecutive year. FamilyMart rolled out merchandise featuring newly drawn illustrations of five talents from “hololive English.” Collaboration illustrations from Blue Lock and Sunshine Aquarium became available for purchase as printed photo bromides via copy machines at convenience stores nationwide. In a survey by Hakuhodo DY Holdings, 28.3% of people exposed to advertisements inside the metaverse answered that they became interested in the advertising company. Meanwhile, the Squid Game VR attraction at the VR experience facility “Sandbox VR” surpassed $30 million in sales.

923 sq. m

Floor space of THE GUNDAM BASE POP-UP WORLD TOUR in OSAKA at Daimaru Umeda, one of the largest ever in the Kansai region

28.3%

Share of users exposed to corporate ads in the metaverse who became interested in the company (+3.1 points year-over-year)

$30M+

Cumulative global ticket sales for Sandbox VR's official Netflix Squid Game attraction, Squid Game Virtuals

Source: The Oshi Lab’s summary of the article

As Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai Approaches, Companies Rush to Prepare IP Experiences

THE GUNDAM BASE x Daimaru Umeda — Kansai’s Largest Pop-Up Store Linked to the Expo

BANDAI SPIRITS held “THE GUNDAM BASE POP-UP WORLD TOUR in OSAKA” on the 5th floor of the Daimaru Umeda store from April 11 to October 13, 2025. At 923 square meters, it is one of the largest ever in the Kansai region and serves as the first stop on a world tour commemorating the 45th anniversary of Gunpla (Gundam plastic models). The company announced that the storefront would also carry related merchandise for the “RX-78F00/E Gundam,” which appears in brand-new video footage at the Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai “GUNDAM NEXT FUTURE PAVILION.” It also announced that the first 40,000 customers who spend 10,000 yen or more would receive an original shopping bag (Anime! Anime! (in Japanese)).

The company also announced that a digital stamp rally would be held around the venue area. Visitors who visit three designated locations can obtain a limited-edition item that turns Gunpla package art into collectible cards.

Lab Note: This is a plan to open a company pop-up store timed to the duration of the Expo. Many of the new store visitors will be people coming to Osaka for the Expo, making it easy even for non-Gundam fans to drop by the shop. Opening a limited-time store aligned with a major regional event makes investment decisions easier because visitor foot traffic can be anticipated in advance.

Capcom x Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai — A “Tactile” Monster Hunter Experience with AR Devices

Capcom exhibited the interactive attraction “Monster Hunter Bridge” inside the “XD HALL” at the Osaka Healthcare Pavilion of Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai from April 13 to October 13, 2025. Visitors wear a dedicated augmented reality (AR) device on their heads and experience the attraction inside a cylindrical theater measuring approximately 12 meters in diameter and 5 meters in height. In a production combining video, sound, and vibration, visitors could reach out to touch a “Felyne” (Airou, a cat-like companion character) or team up with companions to repel an attack by “Rathalos” (Rioreusu). The experience was free of charge and required advance reservations (Inside (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: The pricing design that makes the experience free is a defining feature. Charging an admission fee narrows down the people who participate, whereas making it free allows Expo visitors who are unfamiliar with Monster Hunter to try it out as well. This is a case of leveraging the Expo’s foot traffic to acquire new fans for a game IP.

Department Stores and Apparel E-Commerce Created Reasons to Visit Through IP

Momoko Sakura x Isetan Shinjuku — “COJI-COJI” Collaboration Held for a Second Consecutive Year

The collaboration event “COJI-COJI at Isetan: Everyone Is Useful, Aren’t They” (COJI-COJI at Isetan Minna Yaku ni Tatte Iru n da ne), pairing Momoko Sakura’s original manga COJI-COJI with the Isetan Shinjuku store, opened on April 9, 2025. Following its 2024 run, this marks the second time the event has been held. This installment partnered with Isetan Mitsukoshi’s sustainability initiative, the “thinkgood campaign,” and announced the rollout of roughly 20 new items themed around the global environment and traditional culture. The event used newly drawn illustrations inspired by Coji-Coji’s line from the original work, “Everyone is useful, aren’t they” (Anime! Anime! (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: What matters here is that they did not end the collaboration after a single year, but held it for a second consecutive year. By combining the department store’s sustainability initiative with the worldview of the character, they are balancing merchandise sales with communicating a brand message. Rather than creating a one-off buzz, giving customers a reason to visit the store at the same time every year makes it easier for a department store to forecast customer traffic.

ONE PIECE x ZOZOTOWN, Yukimasa Ida x Disney — Crossing Apparel with Fine Art

The online fashion retailer “ZOZOTOWN” began taking made-to-order reservations for collaboration items with ONE PIECE on March 28, 2025. Three illustrators created newly drawn art of 11 characters, including Luffy and Hancock. A total of 12 ZOZOTOWN-exclusive items, such as T-shirts and hoodies, were released (Anime! Anime! (in Japanese)). Meanwhile, “YUKIMASA IDA ‘ONLY TIME WILL TELL’ POP UP SHOP POWERED BY ZOZOVILLA,” featuring Disney characters newly illustrated by contemporary artist Yukimasa Ida, opened on April 3 at Daikanyama Hillside Terrace. Silkscreen art pieces were sold via lottery for 500,000 yen before tax (550,000 yen including tax) (Anime! Anime! (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: Within the same ZOZO group, mass-market items and art pieces priced at 500,000 yen before tax (550,000 yen including tax) (in an edition of 100) are being sold simultaneously. This combination broadens the buyer base with T-shirts while raising the ceiling on average customer spend through fine art pieces. IP collaborations often tend to compete on low prices, so a design that separates price brackets to serve multiple customer segments at the same time is a useful reference for fashion e-commerce operators.

Convenience Store Copy Machines Became a New Sales Floor for IP Merchandise

Kodansha x Sunshine Aquarium — Selling the Afterglow of the “Blue Lock” Collaboration at Convenience Stores

The collaboration event “Blue Lock Ego Aquarium Night,” pairing the soccer manga Blue Lock with Sunshine Aquarium, was held from March 20 to March 31. Printed photo bromides featuring the newly drawn illustrations used at this event went on sale via in-store multi-copy machines at FamilyMart, Lawson, and Ministop locations nationwide. There were 12 designs in total, including illustrations of eight characters—such as Yoichi Isagi and Seishiro Nagi—dressed up as aquarium sea creatures. Sold randomly at 300 yen for L-size prints and 400 yen for 2L-size prints (both tax included), they were available for purchase until 11:59 p.m. on April 20 (Anime! Anime! (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: This design took illustrations from an aquarium event that could only be enjoyed on-site and made them available to buy on convenience store copy machines across the country. While the event itself could only be experienced at a single facility in Tokyo, the merchandise alone could be obtained anywhere nationwide. It provided a purchasing method for fans who could not make it to the venue by utilizing existing convenience store copy machines.

FamilyMart x hololive English — A Funnel Leading from Buying Gummies to Merchandise Sales

FamilyMart launched its “hololive English Campaign” at 10:00 a.m. on April 1, 2025. The project used newly drawn illustrations of five talents, including Mori Calliope, IRyS, and Hakos Baelz. Customers who purchased two eligible gummy candies received an original A5-size clear file folder. FamilyMart also announced that starting April 8, it would sell acrylic stands (1,980 yen each) and trading acrylic keychains (825 yen) in stores (Inside (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: This is a two-stage design that first hands out a free bonus item with the purchase of snacks, and then guides customers to paid merchandise a week later. Rather than lining up paid merchandise right from the start, beginning with casual food items increases the number of times casual fans come into contact with the campaign. The broader an IP’s fan base is—as with VTubers (virtual YouTubers)—the more effective this phased approach becomes.

Theme Parks and Commercial Facilities Crafted Detailed Visitor Experiences

USJ x One Piece — Making “Premier Summer” a Staple in Its 19th Year

Universal Studios Japan (USJ) held its limited-time event “One Piece Premier Summer 2025” from July 1 to October 6, 2025. It is an annual tradition that began in 2007, with the 2020 event canceled. In the live entertainment show “One Piece Premier Show 2025,” Buggy—now one of the Four Emperors—made his first appearance. The entertainment restaurant “Sanji’s Pirates Restaurant” (7,000 yen for adults) and the roller coaster attraction “One Piece Story Ride” were also prepared (Anime! Anime! (in Japanese), Joshi Tabi Press (in Japanese), Natalie (in Japanese), corriente.jp (in Japanese), Mynavi News (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: The crucial point is that this is an ongoing project celebrating its 19th year since 2007. Because it has become an annual staple while updating its storyline every year, repeat visitors have a built-in motivation to go and check “what changed this year.” There is a cumulative strength unique to annual events that cannot be achieved through one-off buzz campaigns.

Bandai Namco x JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure — Limited-Time Theme Park “JOJO WORLD 3” in Ikebukuro

The limited-time theme park “JOJO WORLD 3” was held at the Bandai Namco Cross Store Tokyo in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, from April 4 to June 1, 2025. It is the fourth installment in the “JOJO WORLD” series. All four attractions and three mini-games featured entirely new content. The venue was structured around pay-per-experience pricing, such as 1,100 yen per play for attractions and 600 yen per play for mini-games. Following the Tokyo run, the event also toured to Osaka and Hakata (4Gamer.net (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: A notable feature is that they do not charge an admission fee, instead charging per play for each attraction or mini-game. Because the design lets people enter casually first and increases the amount they pay the more they play, companions who have only a passing interest can also easily join them inside. For companies considering theme-park-style content, the allocation of free admission with pay-per-experience attractions is a practical option.

Detective Conan x Tokyo Skytree — Collaboration Timed to the Movie Release, Plus Conan Plaza at 15 Venues Nationwide

It was announced that the Detective Conan (also known as Case Closed) merchandise event “Detective Conan Plaza” would tour 15 venues nationwide, kicking off at the Tokyo Dome City venue on April 1, 2025. The project was timed to the April 18 release of the latest theatrical film, Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback (Meitantei Conan: Sekigan no Flashback). Starting from the Yokohama Loft venue opening on the same day and running through May, the pop-up was scheduled to tour department stores and commercial facilities in sequence, including Sogo Hiroshima and the Abeno Harukas Kintetsu Main Store. Alongside this, it was announced that Tokyo Skytree would hold its first collaboration event with the franchise, “Sparkling Tower Under the Blue Sky” (Kirameki no Seitentō), from April 15 to July 14. The venue also stocked merchandise for the TV anime YAIBA: Samurai Legend (Shin Samuraiden YAIBA), based on Gosho Aoyama’s manga YAIBA (Nijimen (in Japanese), Cho! Animedia (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: The sheer volume of 15 venues nationwide is the result of choosing to increase the number of places fans can visit rather than gathering everyone at a single hub. For regional department stores as well, serving as a touring stop becomes a customer-drawing measure that creates a reason to visit the store. The Skytree edition, which even lines up merchandise from another work by the same original creator, is a project designed to let existing fans enjoy the world even more deeply.

Sanrio Expanded Its Toy and Lifestyle Goods Sales Floors Even Further

Takara Tomy x Sanrio, Thank You Mart x Sanrio — A Two-Front Rollout Across Miniature Cars and Everyday Goods

Takara Tomy announced that it would release all seven varieties of “SANRIO CHARACTERS Vol. 1” in its “TOMICA TUNES” miniature car series in late May 2025. These are miniature die-cast cars ridden by Sanrio characters such as Cinnamoroll and Hello Kitty (Cho! Animedia (in Japanese)). Around the same time, the variety goods chain “Thank You Mart” also announced that it would release collaboration lifestyle goods. The designs feature Hello Kitty, Cinnamoroll, and Kuromi hugging plushies of their “friends.” It was announced that stores nationwide would begin selling the items as stock arrives starting in late April, with advance reservations opening on the official online shop at 12:00 p.m. on April 2 (fasme (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: During the same period, Sanrio is rolling out products aimed at two retail channels with different price points: miniature cars for specialty toy stores and an affordable variety goods chain. By selling a single IP simultaneously across multiple price ranges and store formats, the customer segments that can pick up the products expand from families with children to students.

Music and Fan Events Expanded Using the Entire City as a Stage

JOYSOUND x Macross — Collaboration Drinks Linked to a Songstress Audition

Forty directly managed locations of the karaoke chain “JOYSOUND” offered collaboration drinks with the Macross series from March 28 to April 30, 2025. The drinks were inspired by the diva characters of the franchise. This campaign was linked to the “Macross x Sunrise ‘New Macross’ Super Dimension Songstress Audition 2025” (Shin Macross Chōjikū Utahime Audition 2025), an audition to cast the diva role for the latest installment in the series. A lottery giveaway campaign was also held for participants who sang the designated audition song “Ai to Ai” (Eye to Eye) and entered the JOYSOUND campaign (PR TIMES (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: Using an inexpensive drink as an entry point, the campaign invites customers into a participatory project—applying for an audition. It is designed to create a flow where a customer who orders a drink next sings the song and enters the contest. The natural compatibility between a karaoke box as “a place to sing” and an audition as “a project that gets people singing” is what makes this collaboration work.

SHIBUYA109 x JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure — “JOJODAY” Enveloping the Streets of Shibuya

The JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure fan event “JOJODAY STAGE” was held on April 12 at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium Second Gymnasium. To commemorate the event, a 3.3-meter-long “Big & Cute! Iggy Balloon” (Deka-kawa! Iggy Balloon) appeared in front of the SHIBUYA109 Shibuya store from April 1 to April 14. The cafe “UPLIGHT COFFEE” in the Shibuya Station East Exit Underground Plaza also offered a collaboration menu through April 28, creating a rollout that involved the entire neighborhood (Dengeki Online (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: In contrast to the paid stage event, the street-level balloon and cafe serve as touchpoints that catch the eye for free. Communicating to people who did not buy tickets that “JoJo is happening in Shibuya right now” builds interest toward the next touring event. It is a two-tiered structure that places free touchpoints outside the paid content.

Medicos Entertainment x Yuki Yuna Is a Hero — 10th Anniversary Exhibition Held in Yurakucho

The “Baton of Courage Exhibition” (Yūki no Baton Ten), commemorating the 10th anniversary of the anime Yuki Yuna Is a Hero (Yūki Yūna wa Yūsha de Aru), was held at Yurakucho Marui from April 26 to May 11, 2025. The venue exhibited reproduction original drawings, storyboards, and other production materials. In addition, the event prepared a bonus clear card for purchases of 3,000 yen or more, and a lottery entry to win a life-size character standee for purchases of 10,000 yen or more. Advance tickets were already on sale (Inside (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: Dividing the purchase bonus grades into two tiers based on spending amount is a thoughtful touch. By preparing different perks for the 3,000-yen tier and the 10,000-yen tier, both casual fans and dedicated fans can come away satisfied within their respective budgets. A 10th-anniversary milestone serves as a good opportunity to design multiple purchasing tiers at once like this.

The Metaverse, VR, and AR Demonstrated the Power of Oshikatsu in Numbers

Hakuhodo DY Holdings — Ad Exposure in the Metaverse Sparks Company Interest for 28.3% of Users

On March 31, Hakuhodo DY Holdings announced the results of its “Metaverse Consumer Fixed-Point Survey 2024,” covering people aged 15 to 69 nationwide. Among users who came into contact with corporate advertisements inside the metaverse, 33.4% answered that they “learned the name of the company,” and 28.3% (up 3.1 percentage points year-over-year) answered that they “became interested in the company.” People with at least 2–3 months of experience using metaverse services accounted for 8.7% of residents of Japan aged 15 to 69 (an estimated 6.87 million people), expanding steadily by 0.3 percentage points compared to the previous year (Mogura VR (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: Growth in the overall number of users is still gradual. Even so, the fact that nearly 30% of people exposed to an ad became interested in the company cannot be overlooked. Even in a medium that is not yet widely known, the impact on the people it reaches is already starting to be confirmed in numbers. Rather than continuing to wait and see because the user base is small, companies that get started early will learn much more.

Sandbox VR — “Squid Game VR” Surpasses $30 Million in Sales

It was announced that cumulative worldwide ticket sales for “Squid Game Virtuals,” the official VR attraction based on Netflix’s Squid Game operated by the VR experience facility “Sandbox VR,” have surpassed $30 million (approximately 4.6 billion yen). In the attraction, six players wear full-body motion capture gear to experience games from the series such as “Red Light, Green Light.” In response to the strong performance, new mini-games inspired by Season 2 were added (Mogura VR (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: This is a case where a VR experience facility operator—whose U.S. subsidiary once filed for bankruptcy during the COVID-19 pandemic—is making a comeback by pairing up with a hit drama IP. Even when VR technology alone struggles to draw a crowd, combining it with a talked-about IP makes the reason to visit crystal clear. For location-based entertainment facilities, crossing over with an IP has become a realistic means of recouping technology investments.

HADO x Kamen Rider Gavv, Brave group — Consolidating Ground in AR Facilities and VTuber Operations

The AR sport “HADO” opened reservations for a collaboration with the tokusatsu (special effects superhero) series Kamen Rider Gavv on April 2, with experiences starting April 22. Across eight facilities nationwide, the event featured special visual effects where players throw energy balls styled after various sweets at one another, accompanied by newly recorded character voice lines (Mogura VR (in Japanese)). In the same week, Brave group, which operates multiple VTuber groups, announced that its group company ENILIS would absorb and merge with MateReal (the operator of “Palette Project”) and brossom, which operates multiple V-Liver (virtual livestreamer) agencies with over 200 affiliated talents (Mogura VR (in Japanese)).

Lab Note: A location-based AR collaboration and a corporate merger of VTuber agencies are two movements in different domains. Yet both were foundation-solidifying moves focused on how to bundle existing assets together. Not only flashy new launches, but also the timing of reorganizing and consolidating assets serves as an indicator of an industry’s maturity.

Riding Existing Places & Infrastructure

• Opening THE GUNDAM BASE at Daimaru Umeda and exhibiting Monster Hunter Bridge at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai
• Selling Blue Lock x Sunshine Aquarium bromides on nationwide convenience store copy machines
• Using everyday FamilyMart gummy candy purchases as an entry funnel to hololive English merchandise

Accumulating Scale Over Years & Venues

• Running USJ's One Piece Premier Summer for its 19th year since 2007 with updated story content
• Touring Detective Conan Plaza across 15 venues nationwide alongside a Tokyo Skytree collaboration
• Holding the COJI-COJI collaboration at Isetan Shinjuku for a second consecutive year

Source: The Oshi Lab’s summary of the article

This Week’s Takeaways

This week, decisions to “place projects onto existing locations” rather than “build a new venue from scratch” stood out.

THE GUNDAM BASE opened a store on April 11 timed to the Expo where crowds gather, and Monster Hunter Bridge offered a free experience inside the Expo venue starting April 13 (an Expo admission ticket and an experience reservation are required separately). Blue Lock collaboration merchandise became available to buy on convenience store copy machines in tandem with its aquarium event. Meanwhile, hololive English created a funnel toward merchandise sales using an everyday product—gummy candies—as the entry point. Placing an initiative onto locations and infrastructure where people already go makes it faster to bring a project to life than building a brand-new venue.

On the other hand, continuous, cumulative initiatives that build up through “volume”—every year or across the country—remained going strong, as seen with USJ and Detective Conan Plaza. One-off buzz-building campaigns and staple projects accumulated year after year coexist in this week’s news.

Should you place your company’s IP or characters onto a new platform, or build them up steadily over time? Take a look at this week’s developments alongside our guides on the design principles of corporate collaborations and the market size of oshikatsu.

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Weekly Oshikatsu News brings you a roundup of oshikatsu and business. You can browse past issues in the Oshikatsu x News category.