Server goes down as pre-orders open for limited-edition gold Pikachu range in Japan. 

Shu Uemura is one of the most esteemed beauty brands to come out of Japan, and this year, they’re taking their brand recognition to the next level by teaming up with one of the country’s most well-known anime franchises, Pokémon.

Featuring beloved pocket monster Pikachu, the aptly named Pikashu collection contains a total of 22 items, covering everything from skincare to makeup and beauty accessories, all set to be released in two stages, on 1 and 15 November.

Let’s take a quick look at the first release, which contains 16 items (all prices tax exclusive):

There are lipsticks, which come in six shades and retail for 3,300 yen (US$30.44) each….

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Eyeshadows, available as part of a full-sized “Thunder Shock Eye Palette” for 8,000 yen…

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And mini palettes, in “Mythical Purple” and “Brick Blast“, priced at 7,400 yen each.

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▼ There’s also an eyebrow pencil for 2,600 yen.

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Rounding off the first release is a beautiful foundation brush for 6,000 yen and cleansing oils in large (11,500 yen) and small sizes (4,600 yen).

The second release contains two blush palettes (4,900 yen each) and a premium brush set with pouch (6,500 yen).

Along with a makeup remover (3,200 yen), an eyelash curler (2,000 yen), and a specially branded makeup box (28,000 yen).

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▼ Kits containing mini-sized lipsticks and products from their skin purifier series will also be available in limited numbers.

While the collection has two release dates, the pre-sale date for both commenced in Japan on the same day: 18 October. And given how exclusive the new Pikashu range is, the server went down as soon as pre-sales began, with many people complaining they were unable to purchase stock.

Some customers took to Twitter to vent their frustrations at not being able to connect to the shopping site due to the high volume of traffic, while others said they spent two hours refreshing pages in an attempt to proceed to the online payment area, only to find stock in their shopping cart had sold out.

Some who persevered for several hours were able to snare the items they wanted, which is lucky for them as the allocated stock for online pre-orders has now completely sold out.

One of the reasons why customers rushed to pre-order was the fact that customers who pre-ordered over 12,000 yen worth of goods would receive a free pouch and pouch charm as a gift with purchase.

It’s not all doom-and-gloom for those who weren’t successful on 18 October, however, as items can be purchased before the official release dates at the following locations:

  • The Seibu Sogo online site, and its flagship store in Ikebukuro (which will be selling the first wave of items from 1 November and the second from 7 November).
  • The Hankyu Umeda flagship store in Kita-ku, Osaka (which will be selling the first wave of items from 23 October and the second from 15 November).
  • The Isetan flagship store in Shinjuku, Tokyo (which will be selling the first wave of items from 30 October and the second from 6 November).

According to the official Pikashu site, reservations for the collections can be made nationwide from 25 October, so it’s worth checking with your nearest Shu Uemura branch as early as possible to ensure you don’t miss out.

The online store also says it will be replenishing stocks on the official release dates, so if you’re not close to a physical store, you’ll want to be poised to exercise your speedy online shopping skills at the official Pikashu site on 1 and 15 November.

And if all else fails, you can always fall back on this more widely available range of Pokémon cosmetics.

Source: PR Times
Featured image: PR Times
Insert images: PR Times, Shu Uemura
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