Dodger Blue Revolution: The Rise of Shohei Ohtani Merchandise in Tokyo

2024-03-24 05:54:57

▲After Shohei Ohtani moved to Dodge, he also launched a “color revolution” in Tokyo, changing from “Angel Red” to “Dodge Blue”. Products related to Shohei Ohtani will sell well. (Photo/AP)

[NOWnews今日新聞] As Shohei Ohtani moved to the Dodgers, the Los Angeles Angels’ ball caps were almost invisible in Tokyo, Japan. Instead, Dodger products gradually became a new fashion item, and a “color revolution” appeared in Tokyo’s sporting goods stores. Ohtani alone Shohei and Dodge products account for more than 60% of the sporting goods store’s revenue. However, foreign media also pointed out that it is not easy to be a “competent” Shohei Ohtani fan in Tokyo, because just a Dodgers ball cap with No. 17 printed on it costs 6,300 yen (approximately NT$1,281), which may cost a lot of money. Lose a lot of weight.

According to the “Associated Press” report, Mai Fukuo (transliteration) was choosing a gift for a friend at a sporting goods store “SELECTION (セレクション)” in Shinjuku, Tokyo; at the same time, Hideki Chiba (transliteration) ) was also helping his father-in-law choose products in SELECTION. They all picked up the blue products at the same time, and this blue was “Dodge Blue”.

The report pointed out that this reflects that since Shohei Ohtani signed a 10-year, US$700 million contract with the Dodgers in December 2023, an obvious color revolution has occurred throughout Tokyo in the past few months, from the “Angels” of the Los Angeles Angels “Red” became “Dodge Blue”, Angels ball caps almost disappeared from Tokyo, and Dodgers ball caps became a new fashion item.

Takuto Yamashita, an employee of SELECTION, said bluntly, “Otani has changed our store. This store has become completely different. It was once all red and now all blue.” Yamashita further added, “If Without Otani, the store’s sales in these months will be very different.”

The report pointed out that SELECTION has the largest Major League Baseball (MLB) product series in Japan, and they provide services to 30 MLB teams and 12 Japanese professional teams.

Mai Fukuo took down a traditional white jersey with “Dodgers” printed on it from the rack and said, “I am considering buying this T-shirt for my friend because Ohtani is very famous in Japan and around the world.”

On the other side, Hideki Chiba was throwing a traditional Dodgers hat into a shopping basket. He said, “Ohtani is like a hero to us, at least to me as a fan. Even if you are not a baseball fan, everyone knows him. To me, he is an idol in Japan. I think people expect He became a good player, but he exceeded anyone’s expectations.

SELECTION store manager Hayato Daido estimates that 60% of sales come from Dodgers merchandise, or Otani T-shirts, jerseys, key rings, etc. Assistant manager Suzuki Geng said the ratio could be as high as 70%. Daido said that the remaining approximately 10% of sales are related to local teams such as the Tokyo Giants.

Avenue said sales of Ohtani-related merchandise have increased “four to five times” compared to before the Dodgers announced Ohtani’s signing in December. Surprisingly, Shohei Ohtani’s hats and jerseys from his six years with the Angels are still on sale. Suzuki pointed out, “That’s because these items are no longer produced and have become collectibles.”

The report pointed out that for Ohtani fans, SELECTION is like an “Otani Museum”, filled with posters, commemorative merchandise and products with the word “Sho-time” printed on them.

But there’s a price to being a fan of Ohtani, and it’s a very high price. Although the price of an ordinary Dodgers baseball cap is the same as that of other major league team baseball caps, it is 6,300 yen (approximately NT$1,281). However, if it is a product related to Otani, the price will double.

The store sells a ball cap with Otani’s number 17 and Otani’s copied signature printed on the side, priced at 22,400 yen (approximately NT$4,554); there is also a cap worth 77,000 yen (approximately NT$1 If you want to buy a replica jersey of Ohtani’s game ball last season, you have to be mentally prepared, because the value of that one is as high as 3.3 million yen (about NT$690,000). Ohtani used it The price of past gloves is as high as 2 million yen (approximately NT$420,000).

Even so, there are still many fans willing to spend money to buy Ohtani-related merchandise, such as the hat style that Ohtani often wears in spring training, which almost sold out within a few days. Assistant manager Suzuki said, “Fans talk about Ohtani every day on the Japanese news. We can’t imagine what the business would be like without him.”

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