Consider Shopping at Japan's Classy 100 Yen Shop - Seria
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100 yen shops in Japan have been popular for decades and we absolutely love them. They are a type of discount store that sells a wide range of products for only 100 yen (about one dollar).
Yes, there are dollar stores in North America, but I never have the desire to shop their products because 99% of the time, the quality is poor and the items barely last after one use. The 100 yen stores in Japan are quite the opposite and it’s surprising just how much variety of products these stores have.
Daiso is Japan’s number one 100 yen shop, but there is another one called Seria that we prefer over Daiso. Seria is the second largest 100 yen shop, but what sets them apart from Daiso? Our little sister likes to say that Seria is more “classy” compared to Daiso.
Seria caters to customers (particularly women) who prefer aesthetically pleasing products that look more expensive than they really are. Many of Seria’s products are made in Japan and they specialize in designing stylish and cute items.
If you’ve never stepped foot into a 100 yen shop, you can literally spend hours looking at products from kitchenware, stationery, gardening tools, homeware, craft supplies, pet products, glassware, containers, etc.
These are the aisles where we like to shop:
Kitchen Goods
One of the first sections we like to frequent is the Kitchen Goods aisle. The quality of the products lasts longer than you would think for something that only costs 100 yen.
Crystal always stocks up on chopsticks in this aisle. There are so many designs to choose from and they even sell mini chopsticks for kids.
We both have a ginger grater that we purchased a few years ago that still works great and we always end up finding nifty kitchen gadgets that we didn’t even know we needed. On our recent shopping spree, we both purchased a thin vegetable slicer that is made specifically for cabbage.
Automobile Accessories
It’s amazing all the convenient and practical car accessories you can find here. This corner is stocked with goods like a foldable trash can, a hanging tissue box holder, headrest hooks, an umbrella holder, and more.
I’ve found similar car accessories on Amazon, but the prices are ridiculous for the same item and quality. For example, a few years ago, I purchased a similar foldable trash can on Amazon for over $10.
Face Masks
Japan has always been a country where masking was normal before the pandemic hit, so their mask game is on another level. It’s amazing just how many different styles of masks exist here.
According to our niece (she’s twelve years old), the current mask trend is one that has an elastic ear loop color that is a different color from the mask part. We tried to find one of these trending face masks at Seria, but they didn’t have any.
But there were dozens of other styles to choose from. It seemed like the nude color masks were pretty popular. It’s definitely a color we don’t see very often in the states.
Laundry Goods
Mesh laundry bags (laundry nets) is one item we like to stock up on when we are at a 100 yen store because for some reason, they are expensive in the states. Not only are they overpriced but the size selection is quite limited.
You can find an array of laundry net bags as well as nets that have cute designs. Some other items in this section are hangers, pinch hangers, foldable laundry baskets, and more.
Travel Accessories
This is a great section to swing by to stock up on travel accessories. The travel-size containers come in a variety of styles to suit your needs and the quality is long lasting for 100 yen.
You can pretty much get all your necessary travel accessories here: contact lens cases, ear plugs, suitcase straps, mini organizational cases, and more.
Organization Bags
If you are a fan of Get Organized With The Home Edit, you’ll most likely enjoy these organization bags. There are dozens of sizes and colors to choose from and the tags are labeled so that you know exactly what size your mesh bag is. They are typically labeled with a letter followed by a number.
This is one of Crystal’s favorite aisles and she always buys an array of mesh zipper bags to organize her video and camera accessories.
Lunch Box Goodies
We love Japanese bento and this section is a dream if you have a passion for creating colorful, eye-catching bento boxes. Making a bento isn’t just great for school lunches, but you can use a lot of these cute accessories for picnics or parties.
We always get stuck staring at all the cute toothpick designs and the various different types of condiment bottles. Everything is just so darn cute it makes us want to start putting together adorable bento boxes.
There’s So Much More
If you fancy gardening, there are a ton of adorable gardening accessories as well as tools. If you have children, there is a wide range of toys, cute socks, arts and crafts, etc.
We really like the large collection of ceramic and glassware but it’s a bit tricky to take these items home if you are visiting from overseas. It’s definitely doable as we’ve done it in the past and still use many of the items today.
There is also a ton of baskets, organization bins, slippers, paper plates (our mom always buys these cute mini paper plates), wrapping paper, ziplock bags, and so much more.
You can literally spend hours in here and fill up an entire shopping basket without breaking the bank. It’s a fantastic place to not only stock up on goods for yourself, but you can find some really cute souvenirs here as well.