If you want to start playing Pokémon cards, Harukeya is the place to be! Report on the largest Pokémon card game specialty store in Akihabara, "Harukeya 2" (Shun Gori's 9th visit to Akiba)

With the recent boom in trading card games (TCG), the number of card stores in Akihabara continues to increase.

Shun Gori's Akiba Exploration," which began with the goal of creating an Akiba MAP, cannot ignore this movement. Therefore, we have been visiting the ever-increasing number of card shops in Akihabara one by one to introduce the atmosphere of the stores, the types of cards they carry, and their characteristics.

This time, we visited "Pokémon Card Specialty Store Harukeya 2," which boasts one of the largest floor space in Akihabara specializing in the Pokémon card game (commonly known as "Pokéka").

Harukeya 2 is located in an entire building beside the elevated JR Sobu Line, a two-minute walk from the Akihabara Electric Town exit. The fourth and fifth floors are for competitive games.

When I entered the store, even though it was a weekday evening, it was packed with customers, probably due to the recent Pokéka boom. What differentiates this store from other TCG stores is the large number of small children and families. This shows how popular Pokéka is among people of all ages.

Watanabe, manager of Harukeya2, who was available for interviews on the day of the event, said, "It's not like this on weekends. We were reminded once again of the great popularity of Pokémon.

One would think that a store specializing in Pokékas would sell expensive cards, but a look at the "Top 100 Cards Sold at Harukeya 2" on display on the first floor shows that the most expensive cards sold were those priced at 100 yen each, which is contrary to our expectations.

According to Manager Watanabe, "Expensive cards are a part of the store's sales, and items priced from a few hundred to a few thousand yen account for most of the sales." It seems that the store has a thorough policy of taking care of active players and beginners, just like the "Harukeya Akihabara Store" we covered in our previous report.

One of the attractions of a card store is its "pre-built decks," which allow customers to enjoy decks that have been assembled at the store.

At Harukeya 2, you can buy themed decks and even get instructions on how to use them, so even beginners can enjoy using the decks immediately after purchase.

On the second floor, Pokémon cards are displayed in the same way as on the first floor, but there is a larger showcase with limited edition packs and slightly more expensive cards released in the past.

The price is only a few thousand yen, so not only those who collect cards for their collections, but also those who are looking for limited edition cards that they missed out on or cards that they have been wanting can easily buy them.

On the second floor, a large number of cards sorted by type are placed by the wall, and the store is crowded with customers looking for the cards they need to build their own ideal deck. Some customers come from overseas. Some customers came from overseas, and they seemed to be earnestly searching for cards while looking them up on their mobile phones.

There are also eight PCs on the second floor, where you can check the latest status of the "mail order inventory. If you find a card you want, you can purchase and pick up mail-order items on the third floor, so if you already know which card you want, it is easier to use the PCs in the store or order from the mail-order site before coming to the store.

The third floor is dedicated to the sale and pickup of products ordered from in-store PCs and mail-order sites, and has only a cash register and waiting area, so we omitted that floor.

The entire fourth floor is a space for playing games, and at the time of the interview, even though it was a weekday evening, all the seats were occupied, and each table was filled with customers enjoying playing games.

Just by looking at this space, you can see how popular the Pokémon card game is.

At the entrance on the fourth floor, there is a signboard for finding an opponent, which includes information such as your ability and the conditions of the game, making it easy to find an opponent even if you come alone. This kind of thoughtfulness on the part of the store is very much appreciated.

Some people who have started playing Pokémon card games but don't have friends nearby to play with, or when they want to gauge their own skill level, or when they want to make adjustments to their deck in practice, can easily find opponents, and some people go here every day.

If they want to make adjustments to their decks after playing against each other, they can immediately purchase cards on the floor below, which seems very convenient.

On the wall of the 5th floor stairway space (the 5th floor was sealed off at the time of the interview), there are autographs of famous Pokéka-loving people who have visited Harukeya2, and it is worth coming just to see these autographs.

Famous YouTuber HIKAKIN's autograph

There are also autographs of DJ Fuy of Repezen Foxx and Yuuta!

Last but not least, the first basement floor is dedicated to purchase.

On the purchase floor, you can leave your valuable collections in the hands of our knowledgeable and professional purchase staff, who will carefully evaluate them. There are always several staff members on duty, so you can apply for purchase at any time during business hours.

Harukeya2 holds events every day, so it may be a good idea to participate in events while looking for friends or rivals, diagnosing your own abilities, or adjusting your deck. There are also events that start at "7:00 p.m." so that even working people can participate.

For those who are just starting to play Pokémon Card Games or are beginners, there are events called "Hajimete no Pokéka" and "Pokéka Tomodachi wo Mukai (Let's Make New Friends)," so you can polish your skills and make new friends by participating in these events.

The dates and times of events and tournaments are subject to change, so be sure to check the official page of Harukeya2 before visiting the store.

In the 10th installment of Shungori's Akiba Exploration, we visited "Pokéka specialty store Harukeya 2.

It has been 26 years since the birth of Pokéka, and the ever-growing popularity of Pokémon cards will continue for many years to come. If you have never played Pokémon cards or if you want to start playing Pokémon cards but feel uneasy about it, why don't you visit "Harukeya 2"?

The store's staff, including manager Watanabe, are all friendly, and there are many female staff members, so women and children can feel at ease. Above all, the store's policy of "taking care of beginners" is reassuring.

Let's get back to pokekas after 25 years, too, Shun Gori!

We will continue to add more and more Akiba information, so please look forward to it!

YouTuber Shun Gori's activities can also be seen on YouTube.

He is appearing in various places, mainly talking about Taiwan, where he used to settle, so please visit our YouTube channel as well!

# YouTuber Shun Gori

Store Information

Store Name：Pokéka specialty store Harukeya 2

Address： 1-2-5 Sotokanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Phone number：03 (6285) 2830

Business hours：Weekdays：10:00-22:00 / Weekends & Holidays：10:00-22:00 Open all year round

Official page: https://www.hareruya2.com/page/3

Store MAP