Overnight waits and premiums... The Chiikawa craze spreads beyond the theater

As the movie ‘Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of Mermaid Island’ rose to number one at the box office, the competition among fans to obtain Chiikawa goods has also heated up. On second-hand transaction and resale platforms, some products are being traded at 2 to 4 times their original price, and as waiting times at stores increase, proxy purchasing and proxy waiting are also becoming prevalent. While the movie's success and character product consumption are receiving attention together, existing fans are also experiencing longer waits and scarcity compared to before.

Cumulative audience of 1.28 million... Increased interest following the movie release

According to the Korean Film Council's integrated computer network for movie ticket sales on the 12th, ‘Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of Mermaid Island’ recorded number one at the box office, with a cumulative audience of 1,281,485. This work, which was released on the 30th of last month, is an animation depicting the story of Chiikawa and their companions who fall into the temptation of a 100-fold treasure and head to an unknown island to uncover its hidden secrets. At the center of the movie is the process of Chiikawa and their companions heading to the island and learning its secrets. The original data indicated the number of audience members on the day of release as ‘119,961 million people,’ but since the unit notation for the figure reported separately from the cumulative audience was unclear, it is organized here based on the cumulative audience number.

The original work of the movie is the long-form episode ‘Siren Arc’ from the manga ‘Chiikawa,’ which the author Nagano began serializing through X (formerly Twitter) in 2020. The movie was produced based on the long-form story in the manga, and the original report stated that the character's popularity has become even hotter following the movie's release. The movie provides existing fans with the experience of meeting the characters on the screen, and audiences who encountered Chiikawa through the news of the release gain an opportunity to continue their interest through purchasing goods. The original report explained that watching the movie and consuming character products do not move separately but influence each other. While the character fandom leads to movie theater audiences, the interest in the movie leads back to the demand for goods.

Fans lining up from midnight... Maximum waiting number of 1,200 people

The Chiikawa Shop located inside I'PARK MALL in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, is called ‘Yong-Chi-Ma’ among fans, short for ‘Yongsan Chiikawa Market.’ When news broke that new products, such as the ‘Let's Go Together Virtual Mascot’—a Chiikawa character product in Halloween cosplay—would be stocked at this store on the 7th, fans intending to buy the products lined up from midnight. The product was introduced as a new item that is also difficult to obtain in Japan. About 300 people gathered from midnight, and it was reported that the maximum number of people waiting on that day increased to over 1,200. The line, which started late at night, grew longer as fans trying to secure the products gathered at the store.

The store limited the quantity one person could buy to one unit per product, but the competition to obtain desired products continued. Fans trying to purchase products sold in limited quantities waited from the night, and people gathered around midnight for products whose stocking news had been announced. As waiting times grew longer, proxy purchasing and proxy waiting, where people entrust others to purchase or wait instead of lining up at the store themselves, are also prevalent, the original report stated. This is the situation on the ground where new product stocking, long waiting lines, and purchase quantity limits appear together.

Trading at 2–4 times the original price... Scarcity felt by existing fans as well

The phenomenon of it becoming difficult to obtain goods is not limited to new products. According to the original report, even products that could be purchased relatively easily before the movie release are experiencing scarcity. On second-hand transaction and resale platforms, some products are traded at 2 to 4 times their original price. As waiting times at stores grow longer, proxy purchasing and proxy waiting are also prevalent. While a method has emerged where fans who cannot handle the waiting line entrust the purchase to others, the original report stated that not only limited products but also finding existing products has become more difficult than before. However, the types of individual products traded, their original prices, and the actual number of transactions were not presented in the data.

A female fan in her 20s, Ms. A, said she had liked Chiikawa for a long time even before the theatrical release. Ms. A said, “I have liked Chiikawa for a long time since before the theatrical release. Usually, when I go to Yongsan, I can visit the Chiikawa Shop without waiting, but these days I can't even dream of it because of the massive waiting lines.” She reported experiencing a change even with the Korean limited edition products that were previously easy to obtain. Ms. A said, “Even the Korean limited edition Chiikawa wearing Hanbok, which was usually easy to get, has become hard to find.” Ms. A's experience contains the difference between the time when she could visit the Yongsan store without waiting and the recent situation where the waiting lines have grown long. Even fans who liked the character since before the movie release reported that visiting the store and purchasing limited editions has become difficult.

Character fandom and theatrical success lead to goods consumption

The original report explained that Chiikawa's popularity influences the movie and the goods market mutually. The fandom that has liked Chiikawa leads to movie theater audiences, and the increased interest due to the movie release leads back to character product purchases. Existing fans can meet their favorite characters on the screen, and audiences who learned about Chiikawa through the news of the movie release can continue their interest by purchasing goods. The connection between both sides summarized by the original report is that the movie increases interest in the character, and the character's popularity contributes to the movie's success. In this process, whether the theater audience and the goods purchasers are the same people, or to what extent watching the movie influenced product sales, was not presented as separate figures in the data.

The changes confirmed outside the theater are the waiting lines at the Yongsan store, the product purchase limits, the resale prices of some products, and the scarcity reported by existing fans. No subsequent schedule for additional product stocking or store operation plans was presented in the data.

Read the original (Korean)