KelsiDavis

The Pokémon Company has announced a small and sweet little collection which will be coming to Pokémon Centers in Japan beginning January 18th, and to the Pokémon Center Online on January 17th. The drop contains only five new items, two of which are boxes of assorted chocolates. The star of the collection is the Pikachu plush holding a heart (¥2,200 ($13.94 USD)), which is designed with dots for eyes, similar to its appearance in the monpoké line of merchandise from the Pokémon Center.

The Japanese coffee brand BOSS has announced a collaboration with The Pokémon Company, debuting their new Pokémon Trading Card Game-themed cans and other merchandise coming exclusively to Japan. There will a selection different coffee can designs, based on 15 different Pokémon cards and two Pokémon coins, coming to retailers across the country beginning February 4th, however the merch will be a little harder for fans to get their hands on.

In the early morning hours of January 2nd, Metro Entertainment, a comics and collectibles store in Santa Barbara, California, was robbed of approximately $10,000 USD worth of Pokémon TCG singles. The still-at-large thieves gained access by destroying the deadbolt on the front door, sparing the shop any large-scale property damage.

The Pokémon Company International has once again teamed up with Los Angeles-based streetwear brand The Hundreds, this time for a collection inspired by the early Pokémon the Series. Their previous collection from 2022 was heavily influenced by Gen I Pokémon, while this new collection takes just a bit broader of a scope, including Togepi and all the Eeveelutions in addition to the classics.

A yet unnamed 32-year-old man has been arrested in Saitama Prefecture in Japan on suspicion of tampering with the save data and selling physical copies of Pokémon Sun. The man, who identified himself as self-employed, is suspected of listing hacked Pokémon Sun copies for sale online and subsequently selling one to a man in Ishikawa Prefecture in May of 2024.

The Pokémon Company has announced a new cheerful merch collection, starring Pikachu with its two hand fans and a Focus Band. The collection also features some other victorious Pokêmon, like Plusle and Minun with pom poms and Victini. The cheer collection will be available at Pokémon Centers across Japan beginning December 14th, and will become available at the Pokémon Center Online on December 12th.

Clarks Originals, the UK-based shoe brand known for prioritizing comfort in their products, has once again teamed up with The Pokémon Company International for a collab, this time for their popular Torhill boots. The boots come in four colorways, one for each of the Kanto starters and Mewtwo, and are already available on Clarks’ website and at retailers across the globe.

The Pokémon Company International confirmed today that a giant Pokémon balloon will appear in the 2024 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, just as in every parade since the debut of the original Pikachu balloon in 2001. Pikachu and Eevee will appear along the 2.5 mile long parade route in New York City in their Poké Ball sleigh, one of 22 balloons in this year’s parade. This will be Pikachu and Eevee’s fourth appearance in the sleigh, as the balloon debuted in 2021 in conjunction with the franchise’s 25th anniversary.

In honor of Pokémon Gold and Silver’s upcoming 25th anniversary on November 21st, The Pokémon Company has revealed its latest merch collection starring Ho-Oh, Lugia, and more Gen II Pokémon. The anniversary collection will be available at Pokémon Centers across Japan on November 23rd, and will become available at the Pokémon Center Online on November 21st.

Build-A-Bear Workshop is once again expanding their line of Pokémon plushes, this time adding the baby Pokémon Riolu to the collection. Riolu is the second of the Gen IV babies to be made into a Build-A-Bear, following Munchlax from earlier this year. Riolu is a little taller than the standard Pokémon Build-A-Bear at 16 inches tall, and its bundle is a little less expensive at $57 USD.

On November 11th, Quagsire was ceremonially signed in as the official Ambassador Pokémon for Kochi Prefecture, making it the twelfth Pokémon to be given the honor. The Ambassador Pokémon promotion is sponsored by Pokémon Local Acts, a program designed to drive tourism by “highlighting [the] well-known and not so well-known charms,” of various localities in Japan through events and activities.

The Pokémon Company has announced some new metal keychain charms coming to Pokémon Centers in Japan, themed after the Kanto National Pokédex. Sixty-six new charm sets featuring 146 fan-favorite Pokémon will be arriving to Pokémon Center locations across the country on November 2nd, with online preorders available beginning October 31st.

The Pokémon Company International is going to be hosting a slightly belated launch event for the new mobile game Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket, a digital adaptation of the Pokémon TCG, which will launch worldwide on October 30th. The launch event will be held from 10 am to 7 pm on November 9th and from 11:15 am to 7 pm on November 10th at Outernet, an events complex in central London that features screens covering its walls.

Le Creuset, the French-Belgian cookware brand best known for their enameled cast-iron cookware, has revealed the 7 new pieces coming in the second wave of their Pokémon Collection. The first round, which arrived in July to Japan and some other parts of Asia, was a bit more colorful compared to this new wave’s "chic and calm" theme. Le Creuset’s second round of Pokémon cookware will launch on November 6th.

As announced earlier this year, The Pokémon Company International and The Wand Company are continuing their range of collector’s quality replica Poké Balls, debuting their latest today, the Beast Ball replica. The Beast Ball is currently available on the Pokémon Center websites for the US, UK, and Canada, with no word if they will become available for the Australian or New Zealand Pokémon Centers.

Build-A-Bear Workshop has announced the latest addition to their Pokémon collection today, showing off a plush Cubone complete with its bone club in hand. Cubone is available now to customers in the US, and will be coming soon to Build-A-Bear stores in the US. It will also be available in the UK online and in stores, but no arrival date has been announced yet.

The Pokémon Local Acts program has announced plenty of new Poké Lids today, including the first ones ever coming to Shimane Prefecture. Poké Lids are donations from The Pokémon Company to prefectures, and along with events and merchandise hosted by Pokémon Local Acts, are intended to encourage tourism to various areas of Japan. Shimane Prefecture showed off five new Poké Lids today, the very first to be installed there. In the absence of a prefectural Ambassador Pokémon, which would act as a mascot, the new Poké Lids coming to Shimane instead feature a variety of Pokémon in different scenes.

Pokémon Local Acts, the program which encourages tourism in Japan through events, merchandise, and its most popular project, Poké Lids, has revealed its newest additions to the streets of Fukushima Prefecture. Eight new Poké Lids, manhole covers decorated with Pokémon, will be installed throughout the prefecture one by one, beginning this week. These eight Poké Lids will feature Chansey, as Fukushima Prefecture’s appointed Ambassador, in scenes with other Pokémon.

The Pokémon Local Acts program is showing off the newest additions to its Poké Lids project, which places manhole covers decorated with Pokémon around Japan in an effort to encourage tourism. The five new lids will feature Dragonite, who was nominated as the prefecture’s Ambassador Pokémon earlier this year, in scenes with other Pokémon.

Alexander Ivanov, a leader in the Ministry of Defense of Belarus, has recently suggested that Pokémon GO may have been used to gather military information during the height of its popularity in 2016. While discussing national security on the Belarusian talk show “Po Suschestvu,” Ivanov shared his suspicions that Pokémon GO was deliberately spawning Pokémon near the Machulishchy air base near Minsk, the country’s capital.