Crunchyroll is one of the biggest anime streaming services in the world right now. So it’s no surprise that they’re one of the largest purveyors of anime merchandise as well. In fact, their very own Crunchyroll Store is evidence of that, with everything from keychains to plushies and home video releases of their anime series on sale at that online story. However, as an online store, the experience in shopping there is…minimal, to say the least. No different from shopping on Amazon or any other online store. Certainly a far cry from shopping in-person at a store, where you can examine the merchandise for yourself. Fortunately, Crunchyroll aims to change that.
Crunchyroll in collaboration with Three Ten Merchandising Services is proud to announce a new pop-up store in Los Angeles called “The Loop”. This will be an “all-new rotating retail destination featuring immersive activations, exclusive merchandise, collectibles, themed environments, and fan experiences inspired by the biggest entertainment brands in anime, entertainment, gaming, music and pop culture”. All taking place at Westfield Topanga Mall in Canoga Park in Los Angeles, CA; with the grand opening scheduled to take place sometime June 12th, 2026.
That’s not all though. “The Loop” will feature as part of its initial selection merch (which includes apparel, figures, plushies, and home goods) and photo ops three anime series. The anime in question will be Solo Leveling, Sentenced to Be a Hero, and Bananya. All of which are now available to watch on Crunchyroll, of course. More anime will feature in “The Loop” as time goes on. You can find out more about what anime will be in “The Loop” on its official website.
Crunchyroll Investing in IRL Stores Like “The Loop” to Sell Anime Merch
Honestly, this could be an interesting turning point for Crunchyroll. They’ve been investing in irl stores for a while now, but most of them have been temporary pop-ups in small stores, or individual booths at conventions. From the sounds of this “The Loop”, it looks like Crunchyroll are more or less permanently taking over a whole mall in Los Angeles purely to sell a revolving list of anime merch. It really sounds like they’re planning to continue their plans of making anime more and more mainstream by making anime merch more and more widely available.
I’m actually on the fence about this. On one hand, having more anime merch becoming available because of this increased store presence would be nice for all of us merch collectors here. This is especially true if you follow the anime series in question, and thus want to possess merch of your favorite characters from those anime series. On the other hand, anime becoming more mainstream will likely mean that the prices of said anime merch will go up higher and highter. When you go mainstream, the prices are likely going to rise up in response to that in a sort of gentrification of anime as the wealthy find anime more and more socially acceptable. Having more anime merch available becomes irrelevant if they become too expensive for most average people to afford.
Fortunately, in this case, general admission to “The Loop” is free to the public. You just need to wait in line if there’s too many people, but otherwise, you don’t have to pay a cent to enter it. Unfortunately, Crunchyroll subscribers will get early access to “The Loop”, and anyone who purchases a “special limited edition 3-pack of pins for $15 that features each anime series” will be able to skip the line entirely. Let’s hope that this isn’t a sign of gentrification of anime merch.
What do you all think? Does “The Loop” excite you, or fill you with existential dread about the future of anime? Tell us your merchandising thoughts in the comments section below.
For more on Anime, make sure to check back to That Hollywood Show.
Reviews