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The story
It’s been almost a year since Hello! Project’s official goods store “Hello! Shop” announced that a new Tokyo store was “being planned at a new location.” The chain originally closed stores like the Akihabara/Suehirocho location due to high rent and shifted to mail order, leaving fans with a mix of hope and frustration about a possible comeback. On 5ch, while names like Ikebukuro, Akabane, and Gotanda were floated as possible relocation sites, the thread devolved into an argument over whether operating company Up-Front’s Takanawa studio is a company-owned building or a rental (leasehold) — complete with a fact-checking battle citing real estate listings and land price data.
They said it was “in the planning stages” a year ago already.
>Regarding the new store in Tokyo, we are aiming to create
>a space fans will love for years to come, and are currently planning
>to open it at a new location.
Source: helloproject.com / Original article here
What people said
This might be the last chance for a reopening.
I guess prime real estate where they could also hold in-store events is just too expensive, huh.
They can't afford the rent.
No way a broke agency built its own studio building in Takanawa.
It's got a bad reputation and is considered "ill-omened land" (an area stigmatized, often due to past incidents), so it's a bit cheaper than other parts of Tokyo.
Ikebukuro would seriously be a relief.
They said the same thing about Akabanebashi, and that turned out to be a rental too, lol
This one's probably gonna end up a rental again as well.
It's a company-owned building.
>A newly built two-story company-owned building was constructed, featuring an in-house studio area and office area,
>and our company handled the design and construction of the recording studio,
>which includes two lesson studios plus a control room and recording booth.
https://www.noe.co.jp/technology/55/55news9.html
Talk about backfiring, lol
Modest?
So if they lined up some grimy old boards like AKB does, it wouldn't be modest anymore?
No free-shipping threshold or anything — total lord-of-the-manor business attitude.
Wish they'd hurry up and sort out the Tokyo store.
they'll probably tie it to the 30th anniversary.
While they're at it, I wish they'd let us pick up pre-ordered concert merch there too.
They closed the Suehirocho shop because the rent was insanely high — no way they'd go for Akihabara or Harajuku.
Somewhere like Kameari, Koiwa, or Itabashi might actually have a shot.
Having your own theater and still having skills that bad is just sad, lol
Shouldn't that be right up their alley?
Idle Hello! Project members or OGs (former members) could work the counter.
Hello! Project can't even afford a rented one-room unit in some grubby multi-tenant building.
That theater isn't just expensive to build — the upkeep costs are massive too.
No way Up-Front could manage that.
How much does the construction and upkeep actually cost?
It's common knowledge that the small theaters comedy acts usually use don't cost that much — how's this different?
Roughly 400 m²
Takanawa land price overview
Average official land price: ¥3,890,000/m²
We already know, with sources, that the Takanawa studio is a company-owned building — still want to keep embarrassing yourself?
Do they even still run the shuttle bus?
◯ A two-story warehouse
AKB's isn't even warehouse-level, more like a garden shed, lololol
Background and Key Points of This Discussion
“Hello! Shop” has a history of closing stores one after another — including the Akihabara/Suehirocho location — due to soaring rent, shifting its focus to mail order. It was roughly a year ago that the company officially announced it was “planning” a new Tokyo store, and this thread began with fans questioning why there’s been no progress since. The thread split over whether operating company Up-Front’s Takanawa studio counts as a “company-owned building” or a “rental.” Some posters cited a real estate industry website as proof it’s company-owned, while others pointed out the land itself may be leased, arguing that owning the building and holding a leasehold on the land are two separate things. It’s worth noting that the fragmentary information in the thread can’t definitively settle the operating company’s actual real estate situation, and much of this remains speculation. Candidate relocation sites floated included Ikebukuro, Akabane, Gotanda, and Kameari, but these too are just individual posters’ guesses.
*This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hello! Project) thread “Hey, what ever happened to the Hello! Shop Tokyo store???“
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