The official English social media account for the Japanese retailer Animate, otherwise known as Animate Ltd, have recently confirmed that the store in London, which is located in The Sidings underneath Platforms 20 – 24 of Waterloo Station, will be moving to a new location within Waterloo Station on the 22nd August 2026.
Fortunately the move isn’t too far, as at the moment the store is located at Upper Ground 11 within The Sidings at Waterloo Station and on the 22nd August 2026 it will open at Upper Ground 7 within the same area. The store at Upper Ground 11 will also be closed on the 20th and 21st August 2026 so that stock can be shifted to the new location..
For those unfamiliar Animate is a range of stores in Japan that sell anime entertainment and merchandise, such as figures, badges, plushies, and T-Shirts, with the Animate store in Ikebukuro being awarded the world’s largest anime store in 2024 by the Guinness World Record. This particular store featured Posters, Acrylic Standees, Keychains, Clear Files and other sorts of merchandise from franchise such as Demon Slayer, My Hero Academia and BLUE LOCK as well as special activity and time limited promotions with SEGA and Neon Genesis Evangelion.
Animate also has other stores in China, America, and South Korea, but this pop-up store in Waterloo (London) is the first one to be available in the UK. I also explored the Animate Store back in December 2025 and uploaded a video onto both YouTube and TikTok. Those interested in learning more about Animate, can visit the official website. In short, the store will close on 19th August 2026 and will reopen on 22nd August 2026 further down within The Sidings at Waterloo Station.
