The Australian arm of the Pokémon Center has now moved from its soft launch stage to being fully out in the wild as of today. While we might still be waiting on 34 inches of Lapras to hit the shelves, we can rest assured that in the meantime we can cop 6 inches of Lapras (plush) to tide us over. Isn’t the internet grand?
The Pokémon Center first announced that it would be opening an online storefront in Australia & NZ in May, before soft launching later in the month. At the time of the soft launch, the range was pretty small, but it looks like now things are ramping up as more and more products are added to the site.
Currently, there appear to be almost 300 different products to choose from on the Aussie Pokémon Center website, and gone is the message welcoming newcomers to the site and apologising for any jank as things kick into gear. There’s plushies, apparel, homewares, and of course, the popular Pokémon TCG products to choose from – and each day, I (and many others) must contend with the parasites in our brains that compel us to buy it all.
The products in the Aussie Pokémon Center online store do still appear to be coming from international warehouses or storefronts given the shipping costs are quite high, although it is possible as time goes on these will dip should The Pokémon Company decide to set up stock on local shores. Or perhaps do one better and set up a physical Pokémon Center somewhere around the country. One can dream, at least.
Gone are the days of paying even higher shipping costs to cop your favourite Pokémon Center gear from international storefronts, or begging a friend very nicely to bring you back a treat from one of the many international locations. Now, the power is in your hands to make your own (possibly poor) financial decisions from the comfort of your own home.
Grab yourself a Squirtle plushie here.
Image: Pokémon Company International