E-mart 24 eyes subculture hub with anime figures, character goods

E-mart 24 announced Monday it is expanding its subculture product lineup.

The convenience store chain will introduce a dedicated anime figure and manga category on its mobile app reservation and pickup service. The new section will carry figures based on popular anime intellectual properties, including "Jujutsu Kaisen," "Demon Slayer," "Chainsaw Man" and "Frieren: Beyond Journey's End."

Its flagship store, Trend Lab Seongsu, will operate Ichiban Kuji, a character goods lottery in which customers draw lots to win prizes. Available titles include "The Apothecary Diaries," "One Piece," "Naruto," "Super Mario Yoshi" and "Mobile Suit Gundam."

The company is also offering discounts. All customers who access the E-mart 24 app through Sept. 30 will receive a 10 percent discount coupon for figures, with savings of up to 10,000 won ($7) per person. Eight popular manga titles — including "Detective Conan," "One Piece," "Spy x Family" and "Dandadan" — will be available at a permanent 10 percent discount.

The expansion comes on the back of surging demand. Monthly average sales of anime and gaming figures and character goods rose 171 percent over the three months from June through August. Sales of capsule-box and other lottery products in the first half of the year climbed 89.5 percent from the same period a year earlier.