One of the best parts of a Japan trip is having access to hard to find merch!
If you plan to attend a concert or music festival in Japan, congrats! You will be surrounded by plenty of merch to buy.
And if you aren’t, there is still a chance to grab your favorite artist’s merch at the local shops.
Here are the best tips and a store guide for finding merch on your trip.
If you are looking for a survival guide for attending local concerts, check out the other part to this series.
For tips on how to find concerts in Japan, click here.
In-store
If you don’t have plans to attend a concert, you can still get lucky and find merch in stores.
The more popular your artist is, the better luck you will have finding merch in the wild. In 2025, this would be artists like Ado, Yoasobi, and various idol groups.
Tower Records Shibuya (CDs, DVDs, and small items)
Tower Records, especially the Shibuya Flagship location, has the newest releases and promotions for major artists.
They have a large selection of CDs, concert DVDs, and promo material like artist features.
But, they DON’T sell merch aside from small items like keychains or badges. It’s always worth a check, but you shouldn’t expect to buy shirts and other “deep” fan items.
I often hear about visitors being disappointed by the merch selection, so please don’t expect to find much here.
Tower Records is primarily a store for physical media like records and DVDs – not t-shirts and mugs!
Village Vanguard Shimokitazawa (merch pop-ups and local artists)
Village Vanguard is a fun knick-knack store, carrying everything from peculiar desk items to clothing. At their Shimokitazawa location, you can find a wide variety of merch from both popular and up-and-coming artists.
Artists are featured at random for a few weeks to a few months. They usually carry a nice collection of merch, not just mass produced items like keychains or tin badges.
This particular location is unique for carrying local artist’s merch and CDs. The catch is that the merch is released in small batches for only a few weeks. When it sells out, its gone.
The selection is constantly rotating. You have to move fast, but its worth a check!
BOOK OFF (used CDs, idol merch)
A resell shop dream for music fans.
BOOK OFF is the best place to find CDs and tour DVDs at a decent price.
They always have a good selection of keychains, acrylic stands, light sticks, tin badges, and old releases.
Their merch selection is best for idol/vocaloid/otaku/K-pop fans, but there’s no limit to what they carry. Good luck finding what you want!
Each store has an entirely different collection. Plan a “BOOK OFF day” and hit up multiple locations to explore each store’s collection.
You might find a gem!
Universal Store (limited time merch)
The Universal Store just opened and is owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered nearby in Harajuku.
Here you can find featured artists from abroad like the Rolling Stones, Billie Eilish, and Taylor Swift. Their selection is rotating, and sometimes they feature UMG artists from Japan or K-pop artists.
Check their website to see if your favorite artist is being featured!
Online Sources
Instagram (great for news)
Instagram is the best place to find merch information.
While artists don’t sell directly on Instagram – they will post stories about merch drops, pop-up stores, restocks, and so on.
Your artist might be having a pop-up shop or merch restock while you are in Japan, so be sure to check their Instagram.
Online Official Merch Stores (good for browsing styles)
If you have a credit card and a Japanese address, you can buy merch directly from an artist’s website. Unfortunately, it is hard to purchase, as stock usually runs out within a few weeks after dropping.
Online stores are not kept with full stocks.
Merch buying is encouraged at concerts and at pop-up stores.
Rather than maximize profits, artists try to keep an intimate connection with concert goers by offering exclusive merch.
You can snag some merch if you time the drop right!
Concerts
Live Shows (biggest selections)
Concerts both big and small will always have a merch booth. It is the best place to find an artist’s goods, even better than online or in-store.
Booths are often located right outside of the concert room near ticketing.
Its not uncommon for big shows to have merch lines of +30 minute waits. Large sizes of t-shirts and limited edition items will sell out quickly, so keep that in mind when planning.
For small local bands, merch booths are usually available after the show and staffed by the members themselves.
Artists tend release new merch with each new album, tour, and festival season (April – August).
Merch designs move fast – if you see merch you like today, you probably won’t find the exact same design in 6 months.
Festivals (quick to sell out!)
Artists will bring their merch along with them to music festivals.
There will be a designated area for merch booths you can find on the festival map.
Artists post what they are bringing to each fest on their Instagram stories a few days beforehand. Remember, they only bring a small amount of each item to the festival, and it will sell out. Buy early if there’s an item you have your eye on!
I have another post about what to bring in your bag to festivals. You can use that as a checklist when you pack!
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I hope you are able to find all the merch your heart desires, and remember, buying merch helps support the artist too!! 🙂
Good luck on your search. Until next time!
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