Tarepanda Explained

Tarepanda (たれぱんだ) is a cute panda character owned by the company San-X . The term "tare" means "droopy" in Japanese.

History

Creation

Tarepanda is licensed by San-X, the company that introduced Tarepanda stickers in 1995. It was designed by and was inspired when she was being tired.

Characteristics

Tarepanda is a character that moves by rolling over, with a record speed of 2.75 m/h.^[1] Tarepanda's favorite food is mochi, especially suama .^{[2] [3]}

Popularity

In February 1998, San-X launched Tarepanda erasers and letter pads, which proved enormous hits. San-X believed these products were successful because they were released shortly after the Asian financial crisis of autumn 1997, a time when many people in Japan were facing layoffs and, consequently, were sympathetic toward a "worn-out" panda character. Sales of Tarepanda goods exceeded in the first few months of its release.^{[4] [5]} It became Japan's seventh top-grossing character of 1999, generating in merchandise sales that year,^{[6] [7]} adding up to merchandise sales in Japan by 1999.

Tarepanda was a major hit in Japan. It has appeared on annual retail sales charts published by Character Databank, a Japanese character sales monitoring firm, .^[8] It was rated one of the most popular characters in Japan for its cuteness.

Merchandise

Picture books

• Tarepanda: Kyou mo Yoku Tareteimasu. (Hikaru Suemasa, June 1999,)
• Taregoyomi: Nengara Nenju Tareteimasu. (Hikaru Suemasa, September 1999,)
• Taredzukushi: Tarepanda Fuanbukku (Hikaru Suemasa, March 2000,)
• Tareyukumamani: Kigatsuku to Sobani iru (Hikaru Suemasa, April 2001,)

Sticker books

• Tarepanda Shiiru (Hikaru Suemasa, March 2000,)

Videos

• Tarepanda (Bandai Visual, VHS, 2000/7/25)
• Tarepanda (Bandai Visual, DVD, 2000/8/25)

Games

• Tarepanda no Gunpei (Bandai, WonderSwan, December 9, 1999)
• Taregoro: Tarepanda no Iru Nichijou (Bandai, PlayStation, August 31, 2000)

Computer

• Tarepanda (Interchannel, 2001/6/29, typing-tutor software)
• Tare Tsuzuri (Interchannel, 2001/11/22, card-creation software)
• Tarepanda Toissho (Fortyfive, 1999/4/16, desktop accessories)
• Tarepanda Toissho 2 (Fortyfive, 1999/8/10, desktop accessories)
• Tarepanda Toissho 3 (Fortyfive, 2000/4/28, desktop accessories)
• Tarepanda Toissho Tsume Awa Se (Fortyfive, 2002/2/8, desktop accessories)

Notes and References

1. https://www.wired.com/wired/archive/7.12/cute.html?pg=2&topic=&topic_set= Roach, M. (1999). Wired 7.12: Cute Inc.
2. San-X.net. (2011). Tarepanda. Retrieved May 29, 2011, from http://www.san-x.jp/characters/tarepanda.html
3. Tariepie. Retrieved May 29, 2011, from http://tarepie.tripod.com/sum3.htm
4. Market: Asia Pacific . Market: Asia Pacific . 1999 . 8-10 . 7 . W-Two Publications . Sales of the toy passed in the first few months of its release..
5. Takuya Hamashima, "Stressed out? You need 'virtual healing'!", Yomiuri Shimbun, November 27, 1999, at 7.
6. Book: Tsukada, Yuko . Action! Report No.3: 市場環境を調べる . クリエイターのための自営学 . https://jieigaku.net/report3-2.htm . . September 7, 2001 . 4756911501 . ja . September 7, 2018.
7. Web site: Official exchange rate (LCU per US$, period average) - Japan . . 2003 . 26 January 2021.
8. News: In Search of Adorable, as Hello Kitty Gets Closer to Goodbye. Hiroko . Tabuchi . Hiroko Tabuchi . NYTimes.com . May 14, 2010 .