Though yuru-chara was initially rooted in connecting people to brands, the public’s love for the characters themselves soon created a demand for apparel, accessories, food, toys, and just about ...

In 2010 we were gifted the inaugural Yuru-chara Grand Prix—an annual contest where it’s up to the public to decide which mascot is the best in the land.

Japan’s yuru-chara (literally soft character) craze has been going strong for over a decade. The country’s thousands of cute, quirky mascots represent prefectures, towns, local attractions, and more.

TOKYO, June 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- YURU COIN, the official token of Japan’s beloved Yuru-Chara Grand Prix, has officially launched, marking the first time the country’s largest regional ...

Kaparu, a lime-green mascot with a wide mouth and a bald spot, won Sunday’s Yuru Chara Grand Prix 2018 at a mascot festival in Osaka that attracted a remarkable 507 representatives of towns and ...

Yuru-chara for example, is just one category of many mascot categories. With unsophisticated and cute looks, yuru-chara characters represent towns and their history, culture or produce.

The first Yuru Chara Grand Prix in 2011 was won by "Kumamon," a wide-eyed black bear with rosy cheeks representing the southwestern prefecture of Kumamoto.

Shinjokun, the yuru-chara of Kochi prefecture’s Susaki city, for example, used to attend 150 promotional events every year. Since the pandemic, however, all of his gigs got cancelled.

KUWANA, Mie -- Narita city's "Unari-kun," a regional character mascot that's part plane, part eel, was announced as the winner of the "Yuru Chara Grand Prix 2017" at Nagashima Resort here on Nov. 19.