Major Japanese department stores are preparing special fukubukuro lucky bags for the 2026 New Year sales, themed around horses to celebrate the Year of the Horse in the Chinese zodiac. These bags emphasize experiential value, offering unique opportunities such as horseback riding sessions, horse ownership experiences including ranch tours and race viewing, and horse-themed food products. For example, Tobu Department Store will sell ¥5,000 bags featuring 30-minute horseback rides, while Takashimaya offers ¥20,260 bags that let customers experience being a horse owner through a lottery system.
In addition to horse-related experiences, stores are incorporating creative and luxurious items into their lucky bags. Matsuya in Tokyo’s Ginza district will sell ¥8,000 bags via capsule toy vending machines containing random high-value food items like sushi and king crabs. Sogo & Seibu will offer horse-meat sashimi tasting bags, and Tobu’s Ikebukuro store will feature a ¥1.2 million bag with a golden horse figurine. Takashimaya is also planning an extravagant ¥120 million lucky bag with pure gold figures from the popular soccer manga “Captain Tsubasa,” highlighting the blend of tradition, luxury, and novelty in these New Year offerings.
