From 7th to 18th June 2024, HANDS JAPAN (formerly known as Tokyu Hands) will be celebrating a “Chara-fes (Character Festival)” at all 5 stores in Singapore, where shoppers can purchase some products featuring some of the world’s favourite Japanese characters, including Sonny Angel, Smiski, and characters from ONE PIECE, alongside exclusive pre-sale items and workshops to take part in.

In line with Sonny Angel’s 20th anniversary that took place in May, look out for brand new collectibles featuring the cute and iconic boy angel with his variety of headgear – always here to put a smile on your face, like a mini guardian angel. who likes wearing all sorts of headgear. This Chara-fes, look out for the new HIPPERS series, which shows the figurines looking back at you as they scale your stationery and furniture, in their bright, cheery neon headgear, to represent a colorful and festive celebration of 20 years.

In addition, you can also take part in a Sonny Angel Body Painting Workshop (first come first served), where you can create an original Sonny Angel at the Hands Orchard Central store, Hands Suntec City store, Hands Paya Lebar store across every weekend of Chara-fes (limited to 4 pax per session, at $30 each). Contact the respective Hands Singapore store to make a reservation.

HANDS will also be featuring the trendy Smiski – tiny, curious creatures that live in corners, staying hidden until night, when they start to glow, though nobody quite knows why. Gaining traction among youth, this is the perfect gift for anyone you know who’s still a student, or a child at heart to bring delight into their lives.

Simply Toys will also be stocking HANDS with Funk POP figurines of popular anime and managa series ONE PIECE, with both protagonists Monkey D. Luffy and Chopper available. Also be sure to look out for local design studio WHENIWASFOUR’s whimsical new Adventure Passport Covers, featuring the Dream Chaser Girl on a cardboard plane journey, and a “Safe and Sound” variant capturing cozy camping moments with animal friends. Perfect for dreamers and explorers alike, ideal for bringing joy and inspiration to your travels.

Speaking to Mr Takuya Furumaki, the Director of Hands Singapore commented: “Since opening in 2014 here, HANDS has always retained the same core categories of products available, even after our change in branding, with our message ‘Inspiration starts from your hands. Excitement begins from your hands.’ Our key products are exclusive to HANDS, but also remain both affordable and functional – we’re always keeping up with the latest in design and technology innovation to improve our own products and keep our customers coming back, not to mention how we continually update our products to meet customer needs, such as bags to keep laptops and cables.”

“Above all, we pride staff education and our ability to communicate our messaging and merchandising for locals in Singapore, always making sure we have regular meetings with the Japanese side to ensure brand identity, while also making sure our staff remain motivated and committed to the company,” he adds. “I believe that in building the Singapore branch from scratch, we’ve managed to find an efficient and effective way to work together with our suppliers and and local brands on strong collaborations, and I appreciate the team members working alongside me here to make HANDS the company it is today.”

Chara-fes runs across all five HANDS stores in Singapore (Hands Orchard Central store, Hands Suntec City store, Hands Jewel store, Hands Paya Lebar store, Hands Great World store) from 7th to 18th June 2024. More information available here