Where Did Chiikawa Come From?

Ashley Kim

It’s the final stretch of summer, and the sweltering heat is unbearable. Despite the boiling September temperature, however, crowds of people equipped with fans and parasols recently camped outside the Chiikawa pop-up store at the Irvine Spectrum Center. Inside the vibrant pink box-shaped store were countless Chiikawa items: life-sized plushies, comically large pencils, pencil boxes and more.

For those who don’t know, Chiikawa is a beloved Japanese cartoon show starring characters Chiikawa the little cute thing, Hachiware the cat and Usagi the rabbit. This comfort show follows three characters as they work hard to earn enough to afford a life they want to live. With each episode lasting just a few minutes and featuring an easily understandable plot, Chiikawa is great for winding down or turning on in the background. Chiikawa, the main protagonist, is timid, physically weak and prone to crying. Hachiware is Chiikawa’s adventurous best friend and is often concerned over Chiikawa’s well being. Usagi completes the trio by bringing goofy antics, social ignorance, and iconic sounds. Many fans of Chiikawa are drawn to how relatable the characters are, like when Chiikawa failed the Weed Pulling License exam for the second time. After failing the license exam, Hachiware took Chiikawa to eat ramen together and encouraged Chiikawa to keep trying despite failure. With the exception of Hachiware, the characters don’t speak human language, but rather, make expressive sounds or onomatopoeias instead. As Dave Arranda (CAH ‘26) summarized, “they’re silly little guys… they just do silly little things.” 

The Chiikawa craze first gained attention on Chinese social media. Netizens dubbed the show “digital ibuprofen” to describe the calming effect it’s had on the masses. However, for a long time, Chiikawa merchandise was hard to come by due to high shipping prices and no domestic production. This changed when Miniso, a popular discount retail brand, launched a pop-up store in a Shanghai mall in collaboration with Chiikawa. This pop-up store was immensely successful, with items flying off the shelves. A couple of months later, pop-up stores in U.S. shopping centers appeared, including one in Irvine Spectrum during the month of September. 

Even though Chiikawa is a children’s cartoon, it reminds viewers of important life lessons: living life simply, appreciating the small things, and living every day to the fullest. With the holidays quickly approaching and the first semester coming to a close, it’s hard to believe summer was a whole three  months ago. Time flies by insanely fast, and it’s hard not to get lost in the past or the future. If this is all sounding a little too close to home, take a break and watch a couple of episodes of Chiikawa.  Take it from Chiikawa, Hachiware and Usagi, and find gratitude for the present.