Capsule toy stores reach 1,400 locations across Japan

Japan has about 1,400 stores that sell small toys dispensed from coin-operated machines. Many of the stores occupy retail spaces that became vacant during the pandemic. The toys are known as gacha gacha.

Their popularity has grown as the number of children in Japan reached a record low. One industry participant told the Financial Times that life was simpler in the past and that society once expected people to marry and have children at a certain age. The same pattern of adult purchases of surprise toys has appeared in China, where items sold in blind boxes have been popular for several years.