The Pokémon Company International is opening a permanent Pokémon store in London, and it says the shop will be the first physical retail space for the Pokémon brand outside of Asia. The company announced the plan on October 21: the London store is “currently scheduled to open by 2029”, and it is the first of several permanent stores planned outside Asia.
No address, opening date or size has been shared yet. The official post promises “a variety of exclusive merchandise and one-of-a-kind experiences for Trainers of all ages” and tells fans to “stay tuned” for more details.
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Pokémon store in London: the key facts
| What | Details |
|---|---|
| Announced | October 21, 2026, on Pokémon’s UK website |
| Who | The Pokémon Company International |
| Type | Permanent physical store (not a pop-up) |
| Opening | “Currently scheduled to open by 2029” |
| Location | London, exact site not announced |
| What’s inside | Exclusive merchandise and “one-of-a-kind experiences” |
| Next | “First of several” permanent stores planned outside Asia |
The statement comes from Gaku Susai, Chief Product and Experience Officer at The Pokémon Company International, who said the store “will give visitors the chance to step into the world of Pokémon, whether they’re discovering the brand for the first time or have been Trainers for years.” He added that the company hopes it “becomes a place where everyone can come together, feel like part of a community and enjoy the magic of Pokémon in a whole new way.”
Is it a Pokémon Center?
Not by name, at least for now. The announcement calls it a “permanent, physical Pokémon store” and a “retail destination” and never uses the Pokémon Center name. VGC points out that Pokémon Center is the branding used for the permanent stores in Japan and for pop-up shops at Pokémon events. The store’s final name hasn’t been revealed.
The 2019 Pokémon Center London pop-up at Westfield London ran for four weeks around the Sword and Shield launch. Image: Nintendo / The Pokémon Company
Why London first
London has hosted a run of temporary Pokémon shops. The first was a Pokémon Center pop-up at Westfield London in Shepherd’s Bush, open from October 18 to November 15, 2019, to mark the launch of Pokémon Sword and Shield. Nintendo UK called it the first store of its kind in the UK, and it warned that entry could close early if demand was high.
More recently, the Natural History Museum ran a ticketed Pokémon pop-up from January 26 to April 19, 2026. Every time slot was booked, and purchase limits applied. The museum’s own notes say that shop was not a Pokémon Center store. VGC adds that the Europe International Championships at ExCeL London have featured a Pokémon Center pop-up for several years, with free entry slots that sell out weeks ahead. The UK also already has its own Pokémon Center online store, which VGC says makes it a natural first market.
Pikachu and Eevee at the Natural History Museum, which hosted a sold-out Pokémon pop-up from January to April 2026. Image: Natural History Museum / Luke Dyson
What it means for fans and the business
The Pokémon Center stores across Asia are tourist draws with merchandise sold nowhere else, as Kotaku notes, and they also attract scalpers. A permanent London shop gives European fans a year-round place to buy store exclusives. Until now, pop-ups have meant booked time slots and short runs.
The “outside of Asia” claim needs one caveat. Pokémon Center New York ran from 2001 to 2005, VGC reports, before becoming the Nintendo store that operates there today (now Nintendo New York, per Kotaku). So London would be the first permanent Pokémon shop outside Asia since 2005. With “several” more stores planned and no other cities named, the US is the obvious market to watch, but that’s speculation until the company says more.
For more Pokémon coverage, see our Pokémon GO Halloween 2026 guide, the Minior Showers event breakdown, our Max Battle Day counters for Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf, and 12 games like Pokopia.
What’s next
The Pokémon Company hasn’t given a timeline for naming the London site or for revealing the other locations. Expect the address, the store’s name and a firmer opening date to come first through Pokémon’s UK news page. We’ll update when they’re announced.
Sources: Pokémon (UK), VGC, Kotaku, Nintendo UK, Natural History Museum.
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Featured image: The Pokémon Company International
