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The concept behind Figuya X Konsolenkost Retail GmbH blends gaming and anime in a unique mix. Half of the product range will consist of new gaming products and retro classics, while the other half will feature anime figures, trading cards, and Japanese pop culture items. The aim is to create places where two passionate worlds can meet.

"We believe that two similar target groups will come together here," says Sebastian Kost, founder and managing director of Konsolenkost, who launched the joint venture Figuya X Konsolenkost Retail GmbH together with Dr Jessica Janus, founder and managing director of Figuya. Kost and Janus also both serve as managing directors. "Ultimately, both of our companies are about collecting and the passion behind it that we share," says Jessica Janus.

With their joint project, they are taking over an as yet unspecified number of former GameStop Germany stores. The US retail group withdrew from the German market at the beginning of the year and closed all 69 remaining stores, many of them in prime locations.

Figuya X Konsolenkost has praised GameStop for successfully testing a new product mix of gaming and pop culture merchandising in the face of declining physical sales. The company intends to build on this development and continue it with a focus on retro gaming, anime, and Japanese pop culture. "Our goal is to combine the magic of classic video game culture with current trends to create a shopping experience that merges nostalgia with new impulses," says Figuya X Konsolenkost.

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The first store, located in a former GameStop Germany space, is set to open on 10 May in the City-Galerie in Augsburg. Further branches are planned for German city centres — "always in places where people come together, discover, and exchange ideas."

Figuya was founded in 2011 and is one of the established suppliers of original licensed anime figures and Japanese pop culture. The company employs 30 people and operates a total of three Figuya stores in Berlin, Leipzig, and Dresden.

Konsolenkost was founded in 2005, employs 25 people, and offers one of the largest ranges of gaming products, with over 45,000 different items in stock.



Figuya and Konsolenkost Transform Some Former GameStop Sites Into New Store Concept