It was with great fanfare in Tokyo that .Too launched its new Copic Acréa range. These pens prized by mangakas and comic book authors. The Internet user was there and tells you about this incredible ceremony.
First a little bit of history. Today, Copic markers are among the most renowned in the world. Launched in 1987, the Copic range has been enriched over the years with new color ranges. But since 1998 and the launch of the Copic Ciao collection, there have been no new products, strictly speaking.
So, when Copic engineers came up with a revolutionary new product: Copic Acrea markers, .Too’s marketing teams decided – for the first time – to organize a launch event in June 2024.
By a happy coincidence of timing, we were in Tokyo and were able to attend this launch with great fanfare. A look back at an exciting day.
The choice of location, highly symbolic, is doubly perfect. The ceremony took place in the presentation hall of Kanda Myoujin Shrine.
First of all, this sanctuary, founded in 730, houses three major deities: Daikokuten, the patron saint of abundant harvests and marriage. Ebisu, the divinity of fishing and business and finally Taira no Masakado, symbol of the wrath of the people.
The first two deities made this shrine a popular place for businessmen who come to pray for the prosperity of their businesses.
Then, this sanctuary is located on the outskirts of the Akihabara district, the geek district. Where many mangakas frequently go.
But the manufacturer did not just choose an emblematic location for the launch of Copics Acrea. He entrusted the presentation of this new range to the duo Sakura Inoue and Karina Maruyama.
The first is a young actress on the rise. She has had remarkable performances in many Japanese dramas and should soon explode onto our screens.
The second is a former player for the Japanese women’s football team (world champion in 2011 and silver medalist at the 2012 Olympics), converted into a television presenter since her retirement from sports.
It only took two minutes before the room was won over by their performance.
The presenters managed to show the innovative aspect of this new range during an intimate and funny dialogue between the two of them.
From anecdotes about their daily lives to the pleasure of scribbling on a sheet – or another medium – using a copic acrea marker.
The ceremony took place a little before Father’s Day. Karina Maruyama showed a painting made at Copic Acrea for her father. She even said that she would prefer her daughter to be an artist rather than an athlete.
This launch with great fanfare was accompanied by Café Pop-up stores in Tokyo (from June 14-16, 2024) and in Fukuoka (from June 29 to 30, 2024). Very quickly out of stock, this new collection in one week exceeded sales projections by 180%. Without the temporary shortage of stock, the success would probably have been even greater.
Proof that Copics Acrea reaches a relevant target, even before its availability abroad (the product has been imported into France since October 2024) numerous artist threads on Reddit, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube have highlighted before this innovative product.
But actually, what is it? Copic Acrea ?
The name Acrea is a concatenation of the thermal baths Aqua And Create : water-based creation.
Copics Acrea are a new range of water-based pigment ink markers. This alcohol-free ink promises better durability over time and, above all, is multi-surface.
With these pens you can draw on paper, glass, stone, wood, metal, plastic, fabric or celluloid. Perfect for all creative activities.
More opaque, these pens even allow you to draw over a base made with an alcohol marker.
Today, the Copic Acrea range has 24 colors. But this figure is likely to change over time.