Capsule toys have become a multi-million-dollar craze in cute-obsessed Japan. The industry is now worth an estimated 30 billion yen ($265 million), with the fastidious attention to detail in the toys.

No longer catering only to children, a store in Tokyo's Harajuku district offering about 1,700 capsule toy dispensers on its two floors drew Jo Hyeon-jeong in a recent day. The 25-year-old South ...

TOKYO -- The capsule toy market in Japan has seen a drastic growth -- topping 120 billion yen (about $784 million) in fiscal 2024 -- roughly triple what it was four years prior. Known affectionately ...

"Gashapon Department Store Ikebukuro Sohonten," a capsule toy specialty store, is seen in Tokyo's Toshima Ward, Aug. 1, 2025. (Mainichi/Reina Kamoda) TOKYO -- The capsule toy market in Japan has seen ...