The Secondhand World of Japanese Subculture

A little treasure hunt through anime, games, figures, and the memories they carry.

If you are visiting Japan, there is one kind of shop you might want to add to your list—not because you are looking for something in particular, but because you never quite know what you might find.

Secondhand shops in Japan can be surprisingly diverse.

There are stores for clothes and furniture, of course, but also for books, cameras, musical instruments, household goods, toys, games, figures, trading cards, and all kinds of character merchandise.

Some are enormous.
Some are highly specialized.

And then there are the shelves filled with things from another time.

An old game.
A familiar character.
A figure from a series you haven't thought about in years.

You may walk past without a second glance.

Until something stops you.

When a Game Brings Back a Whole World

Imagine finding an old game you played as a child.

You pick it up almost absent-mindedly.

And suddenly, you remember.

Not just the game itself, but the details.

The part of the stage where you always got stuck.

The boss whose attack was particularly difficult to avoid.

The person you used to play with.

Perhaps even where you were sitting when you played it.

This is one of the curious things about games.

Some objects bring back a vague feeling of childhood.
Games can bring back surprisingly precise memories.

It is almost as if the resolution of the memory suddenly becomes sharper.

The object has been sitting on a shelf for years.

But for you, it can make a very old moment feel strangely close again.

A Culture That Has Been Collected

Japanese subculture has created an enormous amount of merchandise over the years.

Anime, manga, games, figures, character goods, trading cards, toys and other collectibles have become part of everyday life for generations of people.

And many of these objects have been carefully kept.

A figure may still be in its original box.

A game may look almost untouched.

A character item may appear far too clean to have spent years in someone's home.

This is partly because collecting is important to many fans. Some people buy more than one item—one to open, one to keep, perhaps another simply because they want to preserve it.

Eventually, though, collections change.

People move.
Interests change.
Families change.

And things that once belonged to one person's collection begin their next life in a secondhand shop.

That is one of the things I find fascinating about these places.

You are not simply looking at old merchandise.

You are looking at things that have already belonged to someone else.

A Small Adventure in Japan

This is also why I think secondhand shops are worth visiting when you come to Japan.

You might be looking for a particular game, figure or character.

You might already know exactly what you want.

But you might also find something completely unexpected.

And because Japan has such a large and varied secondhand market, there can be an enormous amount to explore—from large nationwide chains to specialist shops devoted to particular kinds of collectibles.

Prices vary, of course. Rare or highly sought-after items can be expensive.

But there are also moments when something unusual turns up at a surprisingly reasonable price.

Part of that comes down to the way Japanese secondhand shops buy and resell goods.

Condition matters.

A well-kept item may be valued more highly than one that has been neglected. Some people also take care of their belongings carefully before selling them, knowing that someone else may enjoy them next.

So it is possible to find something that has already had a life, yet has been kept beautifully along the way.

That can make the search even more rewarding.

More Than a Shopping Trip

Perhaps that is what makes these shops interesting.

You can go looking for an object and come away with a memory.

You can see something from your childhood and suddenly remember a version of yourself you haven't visited in years.

And sometimes, you may realize that what you were looking for wasn't really a particular product at all.

Maybe you were looking for something that felt familiar.

Or something that surprised you.

Or simply something that made you stop for a moment and think,

“Oh. I like this.”

That is the small adventure of a secondhand shop.

You don't always know what you will find.

And perhaps that is exactly the point.

For your next visit to Japan

If you enjoy anime, games, figures, manga, character goods—or simply the pleasure of finding something unexpected—consider leaving a little room in your itinerary for a secondhand shop.

Go in without a strict plan.

Take your time.

Look at the shelves.

You may find a rare piece of Japanese pop culture.

You may find something surprisingly affordable.

Or you may simply find yourself standing in front of an old game, remembering exactly how difficult that one boss used to be.

You are not only looking for something to take home.

You might be meeting a small piece of your past along the way.

↓　A little piece of Pokémon history, waiting to be rediscovered.