Pokémon Center London To Return In 2020
This article was originally written for TheNintendoVillage.com, a website I founded and ran from 2018 to 2021.
The London Pokémon Center has now closed its doors after a somewhat controversial spell during its four week opening period. Unprecedented demand saw over 30,000 people check out the store in the hunt for Pokémon merchandise, including an exclusive London Pikachu plush that sold out well before the store’s run ended.
Queues were approaching six hours at times too, with people being turned away before midday on some occasions, despite the store opening until 10pm. People were also limited to six items at one point, before being further limited to five in an effort to maintain stocks.
Needless to say, the place was incredibly popular. It’s not hugely surprising then, to learn that the pop-up will be returning next year when the Pokémon World Championships makes its way to London. It’s the first time the championships have been held outside of North America, and the store will apparently be open for the duration of the competition.
Fingers crossed it will be much better equipped to cope with demand next time around, especially if there’s going to be competitors and fans in town from all over the world.
Source: Twitter