During the last week of June 2014, the official Pokémon Company staff directly contacted some of their followers on Twitter to ask for their personal information and shipping addresses to send them a surprise package. Today, Lisa Levenson @AshFangirlLisa received her package and it contained an invitation card signed by the President and CEO of The Pokémon Company Mr. Tsunekazu Ishihara announcing the reopening of PokemonCenter.com. It will relaunch on August 6th, 2014.


The PokemonCenter.com website closed down on January 31st, 2008 after running for approximately 5 years. The explanation for closing the website was posted on the site and it stated that: “Pokémon USA, Inc. has decided to sell Pokémon merchandise exclusively through its retail partners.” Pokémon USA later made deals with Toys"R"Us and JAKKS Pacific to distribute merchandise. Pokémon USA and Pokémon UK later merged into The Pokémon Company International and formed the Pikachu Press publishing entity and began selling items in retail stores and online at companies like Amazon.com. In 2012, The Pokémon Company International signed a multi-year deal with Tomy International Inc. to expand its toy line around the world.

The package sent to people included: A Pikachu Plushie, a Pokemon Center branded Travel mug, a Pikachu spiral notebook, and a Pikachu iPhone case.

Invitation

The Pokémon Company International is pleased to announce the launch of a new Pokémon Center for the United States -- just hatched and ready to say hello!

This online Pokémon store features special Pokémon items such as plush, apparel, stationary, and much more. POKEMONCENTER.COM is the place to find brand-new items as well as merchandise previously available only in Pokémon Center Japan.

As one of a select group of Pokémon fans, we are extending the invitation to you to come take a sneak peak beginning July 2nd, before the Grand Opening on August 6th. We're also including a few sample items! If you like what you see, don't forget to tell your friends that they're straight from the team at Pokémon and that they can find these products and many more available for purchase when PokemonCenter.com opens on August 6th. We look forward to seeing you!


Source: Lisa Levenson @AshFangirlLisa