From May 20 until June 5, 2022, AppBank is bringing fans of Love Live! Superstar!! a special treat in collaboration with the HARAJUKU app! By launching the app at a check-in spot in Harajuku, users can win a limited-edition Love Live! toy at random, such as acrylic keychains or pins.

App Splash Page

HARAJUKU Map

Random Toy Screen

For those winning a toy, the item can be picked up in front of the CUTE CUBE HARAJUKU Love Live! Superstar!! Wall Panel or at YURINAN Harajuku Takeshita-dori Yu-rin An. In celebration of the event, CUTE CUBE HARAJUKU will be featuring Love Live wall panels during this period, so be sure to go get some great pictures!

Fashion brand XLARGE has announced a new collaboration to commemorate the upcoming release of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero in theaters. The film will see the return of the Red Ribbon Army, which Gohan, Piccolo, and other popular characters will have to defeat. Check out the collection below–is your favorite fighter in the lineup?

Collection

XLARGE×DRAGON BALL GOHAN S/S TEE

XLARGE×DRAGON BALL PICCOLO S/S TEE

XLARGE×DRAGON BALL CAPSULE CORP JUMPSUIT

XLARGE×DRAGON BALL ANDROID18 S/S TEE

XLARGE×DRAGON BALL BULMA S/S TEE

XLARGE×DRAGON BALL TRUNKS S/S TEE

The collection includes T-shirts featuring Gohan, Piccolo, Bulma, Android 18, and Trunks. Items will be available online and in select stores nationwide!

Otabe, one of the most popular sweets souvenir shops in Kyoto, Otabe, is known for its delicious matcha and mini-desserts. Starting May 12, the company has released nine uniquely packaged sweets inspired by Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. The limited-edition packaging will feature popular characters from the series. Previously, the company released matcha cakes for the crossover–this time, fans can enjoy choco-an flavor!

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Choco-an

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Matcha

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Otabe (with Original Sticker)

Original Sticker: 15 varieties, 1 given at random

Focusing on the hashira from the series, fans will want to be on the lookout for their favorite character. These sweets can be bought at select stations in the Kyoto and Osaka area, major Kyoto tourist attractions, and online. In addition, matcha flavored treats will also be on sale featuring Tanjiro Kamado, Nezuko Kamado, Zenitsu Agatsuma, Hashibira Inosuke, Kagaya Ubuyashiki, and Muzan Kibutsuji.

©吾峠呼世晴／集英社・アニプレックス・ufotable

Those passing through Gotanda Station in Tokyo might want to keep an eye out for some tasty treats on sale for a limited time. Patisserie Giraud has opened a limited-time pop-up location inside the aptly-named shop Have You Eaten This Before? The pop-up will be open until May 31, 2022.

Have You Eaten This Before? features a rotating selection of products perfect as gifts, souvenirs, or as a treat for yourself. Along with six cakes made to look just like fruits, a selection of other baked goods will also be available.

Lineup

Strawberry

Orange

Lemon

Red Apple

Green Apple

Melon

While it might be difficult to eat these beautiful cakes, you’ll never forget the way the juice-filled mousse and crispy pastry fill your mouth. Which one would you like to bring home?

Le Cafe de Joel Robuchon, located inside Niponbashi Takashimaya, is now offering a special menu in collaboration with the French children’s book characters Gaspard and Lisa! These items will be available until May 31, 2022.

Collaboration Menu

Gaspard and Lisa Plate

Strawberry Galette with Gaspard and Lisa (Served with coffee or tea)

Exclusive Merchandise

Original Pouch

Coaster

Visitors can enjoy a Gaspard and Lisa plate complete with two adorable mini-burgers served with fries and strawberry panna cotta. Those wanting a dessert can grab a buckwheat flour galette covered in strawberries!

The location will be decorated with Paris-themed illustrations from the Gaspard and Lisa picture books during the collaboration, and customers will receive an original pouch and limited edition coaster as order bonuses. Be sure not to miss this little slice of France in Tokyo! 

©2022 Anne Gutman & Georg Hallensleben / Hachette Livre

Lifestyle brand BAYFLOW has launched a triple collaboration collection! Stores nationwide are now selling items created by the popular South Korean idol group BTS, headwear and fashion brand New Era, and the MLB, the world’s premier professional baseball league.

Dynamite 

Butter

Black Swan 

The designs in this collection incorporate the coloring and artwork found on the covers of the BTS singles Black Swan, Dynamite, and Butter, with the MLB logo. Fans can grab baseball caps, bucket hats, and t-shirts inspired by each song.

BAYFLOW began selling these new items in stores nationwide starting May 13, 2022. In addition, two New Era pop-up shops are open for a limited time at BAYFLOW Kichijoji and AEON Mall Kawaguchi!

Folk Kitchen, a restaurant on the second floor of Hilton Osaka, will hold the Sanrio Characters Sweets Buffet ~Joyful Summer Festival~ from May 20 until September 11, 2022. The event is being held to celebrate Cinnamoroll, Pompompurin, and Pochakko coming in first, second, and third in the Sanrio Character Awards. A lineup of 25 different sweets will be available, including those filled with summer fruits like mango, peach, and watermelon! In addition, a “Zero Leftovers Campaign” will be implemented–so be sure to clear your plate!

Happy Festival Heart Mousse

Joyful Pink Cake / Lime & Raspberry

Fluffy and Crunchy Mango Pavlova

Decorated with chocolate and adorable character designs, the Happy Festival Heart Mousse is a scrumptious dish blending the flavor of banana, caramel, and rum. The Joyful Pink Cake will be a smash-hit with Sanrio lovers, featuring the soft taste of white mousse and raspberry compote with a fresh lime flavor. Tons of other original sweets will be available, including everything from gingerbread to orange tarts.

Visitors can also find plenty of vegan sweets. Summer Blue Sky Jello features contrasting colors of pineapple pulp and soymilk cream that look like clouds floating against a summer sky. Be sure to try the Almond & Watermelon Jello and Grapefruit and Lychee Jello too!

Japanese apparel brand Graniph has revealed two collaborative t-shirts inspired by the upcoming Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero film! The items are available at the Graniph online store and in select Graniph locations in Japan.

Lineup

‘Superhero’ T-shirt

‘Fusion’ T-shirt

The Dragon Ball Super film series has been a huge hit worldwide. The first film, Dragon Ball Super: Broly, was released in 2018. The upcoming film features a completely new story, in which the Red Ribbon Army is reformed and threatening the world yet again. Can our favorite fighters stop the bad guys before they unveil the ultimate evil weapon? Be sure to check out the film when it releases in June, and grab one of these t-shirts to wear to the theater!

ⓒバード・スタジオ／集英社
ⓒ「２０２２ ドラゴンボール超」製作委員会

Mail order cake shop Cake.jp has unveiled three original cakes celebrating the 30th anniversary of Crayon Shin-chan! The sweets are available to order now.

Crayon Shin-chan Action Kamen Cake

Crayon Shin-chan Shin-chan Family Cake

Crayon Shin-chan: Mononoke Ninja Chinpūden Cake

Crayon Shin-chan is a slapstick comedy series detailing the hilarious daily life of five-year-old Shinnosuke Nohara and his family. 

The original manga series began serialization in 1990 and an anime series began airing in April 1992. 2022 marks the 30th consecutive year of the anime series. 

The original manga series has sold over 134 million copies worldwide, and the anime has been dubbed in 30 languages and aired in 45 countries. Shinnosuke has now become a popular character around the world and one that represents Japan.

Cake.jp is offering three brightly colored cakes, each depicting different aspects of the Crayon Shin-chan anime series and the most recent film. The cakes are packed with strawberries and are perfect for both adults and children to enjoy!

Crayon Shin-chan: Mononoke Ninja Chinpūden debuted in theaters on April 22, 2022.

©臼井儀人／双葉社・シンエイ・テレビ朝日・ＡＤＫ
©臼井儀人／双葉社・シンエイ・テレビ朝日・ＡＤＫ 2022

Last month, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu performed on the Gobi Stage at Coachella, one of the largest music festivals in the United States. The singer has now returned to Japan for the second half of her ‘Kyary Pamyu Pamyu 10th ANNIVERSARY JAPAN TOUR 2022 CANDY WAVE,’ seeing the singer performing 30 shows across Japan. The tour will conclude with a solo performance at Budokan in October. 

In conjunction with the nationwide tour, the LOCAL POWER JAPAN Project was launched to energize Japan through the appeal of regional towns and cities and has been attracting major attention. Kyary’s newest collaboration in Yamagata has been announced ahead of her concert there on May 13!

The singer will be collaborating with Shelter Nanyo Hall in Nanyo, Yamagata, a small town of only around 30,000 people. The hall is the world’s largest wooden concert hall, made entirely from laminated local cedar. It uses the most advanced fire-resistant technology for wood in Japan and was certified as the world’s largest by Guinness World Records in December 2015. The multi-functional hall can seat over 1,400 people, and the property also features a Japanese-style tea room, meeting rooms, an open tree-growing space, and more.

“I want the local population to be incredibly proud of this magnificent wooden structure,” said Norihito Shimanuki, the hall’s director. “Through this concert hall, we’d like to promote Nanyo and Yamagata Prefecture both domestically and internationally.” 

The collaboration logo for the newest partnership was inspired by the ‘KPP NANDA COLLECTION LIVE in HAWAII’ visual. The one-night-only concert was held in July 2014. Since the main focus of this team-up is ‘wood,’ the visual’s palm tree has been transformed into a cedar tree!

A collaborative T-shirt is also on sale featuring the new logo and the singer’s 10th-anniversary logo. The shirt is available on the LOCAL POWER JAPAN Project website for two weeks only starting May 12. Support Japanese businesses and pick one up while you can!

Hat brand CA4LA is collaborating with popular Australian artist MULGA on a new collection! Mulga is celebrating the 10th anniversary of his first solo exhibition. Items from the collection will be available at CA4LA stores nationwide (excluding outlet stores), the CA4LA online store, and ZOZOTOWN starting May 13, 2022.

Lineup

This marks the second collaboration between the two. Items in this collection are perfect for summer, with bright and colorful decorations commonly found in MULGA’s works. Customers will receive a commemorative 10-year anniversary MULGA magnet with each hat purchase. Each magnet was designed by the artist to express his gratitude to his fans for supporting him for the last decade.

The artist will also be holding a canvas exhibition at CA4LA’s Shibuya store from May 13 until May 31, 2022. Those visiting the exhibition will be able to purchase artwork, so be sure to attend if you have the chance!

GROOVE X’s home robot series LOVOT is set to launch a new collaboration with the Disney store.

The Minnie and Mickey LOVOT Costumes are available for purchase at the Disney Flagship Shop Tokyo, Disney Store Shinjuku Takashimaya, Disney Store LUCUA Osaka, and the Disney Official Online Store shopDisney.

LOVOT Costume – Mickey

This fancy costume will make your LOVOT look just like Mickey Mouse, dressed up with an elegant gold bow tie.
The white gloves and large round ears are too adorable. (The bow tie is removable!)

Mickey Costume Purchase Bonus: Mickey Design

LOVOT Costume – Minnie

The Minnie costume features a red and white polka dot dress and a cute ribbon. The lace visible beneath the hem of the dress is a key point.

Minnie Costume Purchase Bonus: Minnie Design

The costumes also come with special serial numbers that can be entered into the LOVOT app to give your robot Mickey or Minnie eyes! Disney fans won’t want to miss out on this chance!