<Special Interview> We spoke with a Don Quijote representative about their vision for a "magazine shop," and it yielded some insightful facts and sparked some new ideas!
[From Kodansha Ltd.] Press Release
Weekly Shonen Magazine, in collaboration with Don Quijote Co., Ltd., will begin permanently establishing "Magazine Shops" within Don Quijote's general discount stores (Shibuya Main Store, Ikebukuro East Exit Store, and Shinsekai Store) starting July 25, 2026 (Saturday).
This is the first offline store for "Weekly Shonen Magazine," and also the first full-scale collaboration with a shonen manga brand for "Don Quijote." Furthermore, it's an unprecedented attempt to focus on official merchandise from the original manga, rather than anime or game goods!
Comment from Kodansha's Rights & MD Department : We are pleased to announce the opening of the first permanent shop for "Weekly Shonen Magazine" that will primarily feature original merchandise!
By permanently setting up a store in Don Quijote, which is extremely popular not only in Japan but also among inbound tourists, we hope to make Japanese pop culture and manga easily available as souvenirs from Japan!
Receive one free commemorative postcard to celebrate the store opening!
Starting July 25th, 2026 (Saturday), as a grand opening special, customers who purchase related merchandise totaling 2,200 yen (tax included) or more will receive one special Magazine collage art postcard! The visual, which combines popular works from both the past and present of the "Weekly Shonen Magazine" brand into a single artwork, was created specifically for this "Magazine Shop."
A new illustration for 'FAIRY TAIL' has been released!
To commemorate the opening of this store, we've unveiled a new visual drawn by Hiro Mashima! Donpen, who has been a beloved official character of Don Quijote for many years, is wearing a headpiece of Happy, a popular character from 'FAIRY TAIL,' making this a truly special illustration.
Comment from Don Quijote staff : We hope you'll pay attention not only to the new illustrations by Mr. Mashima, but also to the store's decorations. As a first for participating stores, we've put up giant artwork of Magazine works on the walls of the stairs and landings. There's a giant titan (Attack on Titan) drawn on the stairs, a huge illustration of Isagi x Kaiser from "Blue Lock" covering an entire wall, and an effect that makes you feel like you're walking up the stairs with Natsu (FAIRY TAIL). We also plan to distribute postcards using collages of Magazine works as novelty items. These are quite luxurious collages that only a Magazine Shop could create, so please be sure to get one.
Here is the lineup of merchandise for sale in the first wave!
We plan to release many more new products in the future!
For more details, please check the Don Quijote "Magazine Shop" page.
https://www.donki.com/products/magazine_shop
"Magazine Shop" permanently located stores
MEGA Don Quijote Shibuya Main Store
https://www.donki.com/store/shop_detail.php?shop_id=442
Don Quijote Ikebukuro East Exit Store
https://www.donki.com/store/shop_detail.php?shop_id=255
MEGA Don Quijote Shinsekai Store
https://www.donki.com/store/shop_detail.php?shop_id=356
<Interview>
Do inbound tourists visit at night?! "We want you to sell Sasha's sweet potatoes…" When we asked the person in charge at Don Quijote about their thoughts on the "Magazine Shop," we uncovered some convincing facts and generated some new ideas!
What was the biggest deciding factor in launching this permanent shop in collaboration with Weekly Shonen Magazine? Please tell us what kind of synergy you saw in the brand image and customer base of both companies.
<Mr. Koyama from Don Quijote>
I've always thought that Don Quijote has a good affinity with the magazine's customer base. This is because recently, they've had a large number of young customers and inbound tourists.
We've previously featured works from "Magazine" at pop-up events. The "Blue Lock" pop-up event we had until recently was very well-received, so naturally, the idea of "wanting to open a permanent shop" came up, and things progressed very quickly.
When the idea of "opening a permanent shop with Weekly Shonen Magazine" first came up within the company, what was the first "intuition" that came to mind?
<Mr. Nakatsuji from Don Quijote>
I was incredibly positive. Personally, I thought, "I absolutely want to be in charge of this!" That's because, although I've done many pop-up events for anime in the past, I've never been able to do anything with original merchandise. In that context, seeing Kodansha's initiatives—like the original Blue Lock event held at KODANSHA HOUSE in New York, or the Attack on Titan project where they created art on the beach—I felt they were a little different from other companies. I was impressed by their interesting projects that cater to the fans.
From Kodansha's perspective, the more popular a work is when it's adapted into an anime, the more the focus tends to be on anime merchandise. However, by closely monitoring fan feedback, there is definitely a demand for original manga merchandise, so a permanent shop like this one, which focuses on original manga goods, is groundbreaking.
<Mr. Koyama>
This time, I'm finally collaborating with the original author, which I've always wanted to do. When it comes to working with the original author, I always imagined it would be very difficult to ask the currently serialized author to create new illustrations. Up until now, a planning company had been involved as an intermediary, so I didn't really know how far I could go with my requests. However, when I met with the editorial staff at the kick-off meeting, they were very positive and said, "Well, since 'FAIRY TAIL' is celebrating its 20th anniversary, how about some new illustrations?" I was so happy to hear that.
Don Quijote has an overwhelming strength in attracting inbound tourists. By partnering with magazine works that have fans all over the world (such as "FAIRY TAIL" and "Attack on Titan"), what kind of new "customer experiences" do you think you can offer to international travelers?
<Mr. Koyama>
For example, stores that sell character goods aren't usually open late at night. But foreigners visiting Japan spend their days sightseeing, so they end up shopping at night. Of course, they shop at various tourist spots, but I feel that many of them come to Don Quijote because it offers something more "Japanese," or something that feels more authentic, rather than the typical tourist spots.
Given this background, I thought it would be great to offer customers a more night-market-like experience of Japanese pop culture. Pop-up shops tend to sell out quickly, and customers often have to queue, which can be a high hurdle for inbound tourists. That's why the key point of this "magazine shop" is that it's a permanent fixture.
Do inbound tourists tend to use the service more often at night?
<Mr. Koyama>
I used to be the manager of the Asakusa store, which had many inbound tourists, and we saw a lot of customers coming in between 10 PM and 1 AM. They would do some sightseeing during the day, go back to their hotels to drop off their luggage, have dinner, and then come to our store. Late-night shopping isn't very common in Japan, but there's a culture of night markets overseas.
<Mr. Nakatsuji>
In Japan, some drugstores are open at night, but department stores and mass retailers generally close by 10 PM. Don Quijote has actually been open late into the night since before the influx of international tourists began, and the image of Donpen riding on the moon is meant to convey the message, "We're watching over everyone, even at night."
What are the most popular items among inbound tourists visiting at night?
<Mr. Koyama>
We do very well with sweets, pharmaceuticals, and beauty products, but aside from consumables, character-themed goods are our best-sellers. Our customers are not so much hardcore anime and manga otaku, but rather more casual fans who think, "Since I've come all the way to Japan, I might as well buy some authentic anime and manga merchandise to take home."
These days, Japanese IP products are available overseas, so items that are only sold in Japan are especially popular. For example, products that combine Hello Kitty with Japanese culture. It's similar to how we feel when we go to China and buy locally produced collaboration Lovebu products. In that sense, I think our strength lies in being able to reach a wide range of customers overseas.
This will be the first offline store to connect the magazine with its readers. What role do you envision Don Quijote playing in this new venture?
<Mr. Nakatsuji>
We believe this initiative will create a touchpoint where people can regularly engage with magazine works. Don Quijote has 676 stores across all 47 prefectures of Japan, from Hokkaido in the north to Ishigaki Island in the south. For example, it's difficult for people living in rural areas to easily go to Disneyland. Limited-time pop-up stores are even more difficult. But there are many people in rural areas who love IP, entertainment, and characters. For now, we're starting with three stores in the city center: Shibuya, Ikebukuro, and Shinsekai, but eventually, we want to reach people all over the country who can't easily come to Tokyo or Osaka to buy merchandise. I myself am from Mie Prefecture and had a hard time buying merchandise, so I have a particularly strong desire for nationwide expansion.
<Mr. Koyama>
Each Don Quijote store has its own unique character and a completely different concept. The Shibuya, Ikebukuro, and Shinsekai locations, where the first stores will open, are popular stores nationwide where securing sufficient sales floor space is difficult. Shibuya attracts many people from both Japan and abroad as a photo spot, and it has become more of an amusement park than a mass retailer. Recently, it seems to have become a pilgrimage site as a location where famous overseas celebrities have filmed commercials. Shinsekai is a town with a vibrant anime and manga culture and a large young population.
Don Quijote has collaborated on various products in the past. Is there a core principle that remains constant when deciding on collaborations?
<Mr. Koyama>
Our keywords for product development and store operations are "excitement and thrills." When we collaborate, the key points are whether we can create excitement and thrills, and more specifically, whether we can offer something surprising. It's about whether we can come up with a mind-blowing project. For example, recently, when we collaborated with the movie "Back to the Future," we created an AIWA cassette player that appears in the film. We also created a water bottle that looks similar to the drink bottle that appears in the movie. While typical mass retailers of character goods tend to focus on stationery and apparel, our strength lies in our genre-less approach, offering everything from home appliances and cosmetics to colored contact lenses.
I would love for them to sell Sasha's potatoes from Attack on Titan…
<Mr. Koyama>
That sounds great (laughs). Actually, we sell a ton of roasted sweet potatoes. Not steamed sweet potatoes, but roasted ones. I wonder if we could do a collaboration with roasted sweet potatoes… Also, our home appliance manager has been saying for ages that he wants to make an Attack on Titan-themed rice cooker that goes "whoosh!" (laughs).
Within the company, there are other stores besides these three that have expressed interest in opening a magazine shop, so we are considering expanding nationwide in the future. We also want to increase the amount of merchandise, and the day may come when Sasha's potato becomes a reality!
Many limited-edition items will be available, including newly drawn illustrations for "FAIRY TAIL." As the person in charge, are there any items that you particularly feel will go viral, or any projects that you are paying attention to?
<Mr. Nakatsuji>
In addition to the new illustrations by Mr. Mashima, we hope you'll also pay attention to the store's decorations, not just the merchandise. As a first in the nation, Don Quijote has installed giant artwork of Magazine works on the walls of the staircases and landings. There's a gigantic giant (Attack on Titan) painted on the staircase, a huge illustration of Blue Lock covering an entire wall, and an effect that makes you feel like you're walking up the stairs with Natsu (FAIRY TAIL). We also plan to distribute postcards featuring collages of Magazine works as novelty items. These are quite luxurious collages that only a Magazine Shop could create, so be sure to get one.
[From Kodansha Ltd.] Press Release
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