With the anime marking its 25th anniversary this year, the world¡¯s first permanent store for ¡°Sailor Moon¡± goods opened Saturday in Tokyo¡¯s trendy Harajuku district.

The Sailor Moon shop is inside the Laforet building and sells a variety of goods ranging from key chains and smartphone cases to books, clothes and accessories.

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There also are a number of exclusive items that will only be sold at this store, a spokeswoman at Toei Animation Co., which manages the shop, said.

While Sailor Moon pop-up stores, such as the temporary cafe already operating in the same area, are a common site in Japan, the Harajuku shop is the first permanent one.

¡°Sailor Moon¡± received a boost when the animated TV series marked its 20th anniversary in 2012, and new goods have been added to the lineup since then, the spokeswoman said.

¡°Because more goods have been released since the 20th anniversary, many fans were requesting a permanent store,¡± she said.

Illustrator Naoko Takeuchi started ¡°Sailor Moon¡± as a manga in 1991, and the anime kicked off the following year, drawing a following not only in Japan, but overseas as well.

Reflecting its enduring popularity, Toei Animation said at least 170 people were lined up along Meiji Dori Avenue for the store¡¯s grand opening.

¡°I have loved ¡®Sailor Moon¡¯ ever since I was young, so my friend and I came today for the Sailor Moon cafe and for the opening of the shop,¡± said Sara Kissick-Skeel, an American who is teaching English in Tochigi Prefecture.

For fans, the opening of the first standing store is ¡°a pretty big deal,¡± Kissick-Skeel said.

¡°It¡¯s really exciting to know that there is a permanent place where they will always have something there for you,¡± she said, recalling how hard it was to buy ¡°Sailor Moon¡± merchandise when she was living in the United States.