You don’t have to envy Tokyo’s Akihabara or Ikebukuro anymore. Over the last three or four years, the area around Hongik University Station Exit 4 in Seoul has transformed into a full-blown anime and subculture goods district. At the center of it all sits AK& Hongdae (formerly AK Plaza Hongdae), directly connected to the station, with the colossal Animate Hongdae on the 5th floor. Radiating outward through the surrounding alleys, you’ll find figure shops, gacha (capsule toy) dens, ichiban-kuji specialty stores, Japanese-style secondhand goods shops, and anime concept cafés and bars packed tightly together. Fans have taken to calling this neighborhood “Hongkihabara” — a portmanteau of Hongdae and Akihabara. Below is a guide to the Hongdae goods shop circuit that Korean fans actually work through, complete with addresses, hours, and Naver Map buttons.
At a Glance (as of 2026)
- Home Base: AK& Hongdae (directly connected to Hongik University Station Exit 4). One building houses Animate (5F), MegaHouse figures (3F), and O Museum anime exhibitions (4F).
- Anchor Store: Animate Hongdae — the largest Animate location outside Japan. Manga, light novels, merch, CDs, and regular pop-up events.
- Alley Select Shops: JS Store, Anseodang, Brother Goods, Ainonomono, Lashinbang and K-BOOKS.
- Experiences: O Museum and DUEX anime IP exhibitions, POP MART flagship, Secret Base anime cocktail bar.
- Local Vibe: This is not a tourist trap — it's the real-life commercial district of Korean fans in their teens and twenties.
Why Did Hongdae Become “Korea’s Akihabara”?
It all traces back to 2021, when Animate Hongdae opened on the top floor (5F) of AK& Hongdae. Animate is the Japanese brand that specializes in anime merchandise and books, and the Hongdae location is the largest Animate store anywhere outside Japan. A renovation in April 2024 nearly doubled the floor space and boosted foot traffic by 1.5 times, adding two dedicated event halls — and that single anchor tenant reshaped the entire building and the neighborhood around it.
The numbers tell the story. AK& Hongdae’s annual revenue leapt from ₩27.7 billion in 2021 to ₩83.7 billion in 2024 — more than tripling in three years. When CEO Koh Joon took the helm in 2022, his diagnosis was blunt: “The Hongdae location was empty because nobody was thinking about who the actual customers were.” His rebranding of the building as “Hongkihabara” paid off spectacularly. Once Animate established itself, small select shops selling items you can’t easily find inside Animate, gacha stores, and anime-themed cafés and bars began sprouting up in every alley. These days, even people who know next to nothing about anime drop by just to browse — it’s become that kind of neighborhood.
Do Korean Locals Actually Go Here? — They’re the Main Crowd
Yes — and they far outnumber the tourists. Animate Hongdae’s core customer base is teens and twenty-somethings. One trend analysis of Hongdae-related search keywords found that among teenagers, “fandom life” (deokjil) ranked 3rd and “anime” ranked 8th. For Gen Z Koreans, collecting anime merch isn’t some underground hobby — it’s a way to wear your personality on your sleeve. Trends that started in otaku culture, like baekkku (sticking your favorite character’s can badges inside a transparent pouch to decorate your bag), have crossed fully into the mainstream.
The weekend scene paints the picture perfectly. In the shade of the park beside AK&, you’ll regularly see fans calling each other by their online nicknames and holding merchandise swap meets. People stroll around shopping in cosplay they made themselves, and you’ll spot the occasional itasha — a car wrapped in decals of someone’s favorite character. For foreign visitors, this neighborhood is a convenient pilgrimage site that saves you a flight to Japan, but make no mistake: the real protagonists here are Korea’s homegrown Gen Z subculture fans.
What’s Inside AK& Hongdae? (3F, 4F, 5F)
Your shopping route starts — no question — at AK& Hongdae. It’s connected right to the station, so finding it is a breeze, and you can tackle shopping, figures, and exhibitions by floor, all in one building.
| Floor | Store | What You’ll Find |
|---|---|---|
| 5F | Animate Hongdae | Anime, manga, and game merch; manga and light novels; J-POP and OST CDs; regular pop-up events. Animate Café on the same floor. |
| 4F | O Museum | Curated anime IP exhibitions (Digimon, Bleach, Case Closed, and more). Connected goods shop and photo booth. |
| 3F | MegaHouse / PRAF | MegaHouse = a figure specialist (widely considered a “Lookup Figure holy ground”). PRAF = a subculture fashion select shop with a jirai-kei (landmine style) and underground idol aesthetic. |
The local ritual goes like this: buy your goods at Animate, then head to the Animate Café on the same floor, spread out your haul, and snap that obligatory haul photo. On the 4th floor, O Museum has pulled off impressive coups — like curating a Bleach exhibition that didn’t even exist in Japan (with the original creator’s approval) and bringing the Case Closed touring exhibition to Seoul after its Japan run wrapped up. If you’re serious about figures, check out the Lookup series at MegaHouse on the 3rd floor; if you’re hunting for wardrobe pieces that stand out, browse PRAF on the same floor.
📍 Open in Naver Map — AK& Hongdae · Animate
Alley Select Shops — Where You Find What Animate Doesn’t Carry
The real fun starts when you step out of AK& into the side streets. While Animate focuses on new, officially licensed goods, the surrounding select shops are all about the thrill of hunting down out-of-print items, rare finds, and secondhand treasures. Most are a 5-to-10-minute walk from Hongik University Station Exits 4 through 9.
| Shop | Location (Mapo-gu) | Vibe |
|---|---|---|
| JS Store | 48-24 Wausan-ro 29-gil, 1F | Billed as a “figure showroom.” Spacious and comfortable, with vintage and shoujo classics like Digimon and Ranma ½. Paid exhibition space JS Gallery on 2F. |
| Figurepresso FP | 48-11 Wausan-ro 29-gil, B1·1–2F | Basement: figures and kuji. 1F: blind-box goods and plushies. 2F: events. |
| Hoe Market Hongdae | 48-14 Wausan-ro 29-gil | A trove of rare and unusual merch (no photography allowed, prices on the higher side). |
| Anseodang | 17 Sinchon-ro 6-gil, B1 | The most famous “treasure hunt” spot after Animate. Cramped and absolutely packed with stuff. |
| Brother Goods Hongdae | 24 Sinchon-ro 6-gil, 2F | Right across from Anseodang. High-quality ichiban-kuji prizes and plushies (nui). |
| Ainonomono | 22-8 Sinchon-ro 4-gil | Rare magical-girl and retro anime goods, displayed with care. |
| Anime Sekai Hongdae | 155-1 Eoulmadang-ro, 2F | The widest range of anime and game titles — a stronghold for niche series. |
Among these, JS Store opened its doors in August 2023 with a pitch: a “figure showroom” that’s genuinely enjoyable even if you’re just browsing. Unlike other shops crammed floor-to-ceiling with merchandise, its airy, gallery-like layout has earned serious word-of-mouth buzz. Anseodang is a tiny basement shop down a narrow alley that’s become the second-most-famous pilgrimage site after Animate, and right across the street on the 2nd floor, Brother Goods has top-notch ichiban-kuji stock — the two pair perfectly for a single run.
📍 Open in Naver Map — JS Store 📍 Open in Naver Map — Anseodang
Where to Find Secondhand and Out-of-Print Goods (Japanese-Style Resale Shops)
If you’re hunting for out-of-print or premium-priced vintage goods, Japanese-style secondhand shops are your answer. Well-known Japanese resale chains have set up shop in Hongdae and serve as the neighborhood’s treasure-hunt headquarters.
| Shop | Location (Mapo-gu) | Vibe |
|---|---|---|
| Lashinbang Korea Seoul Main | 178-5 Yanghwa-ro, B1 | A famous Japanese secondhand merch chain. Easy to miss — it’s underground. Stocks everything from vintage to recent releases; you can score discontinued items at low prices. |
| Lashinbang Seoul No. 1 | 100 Wausan-ro | Near the front gate of Hongik University. Particularly strong on tapestry selection (mind the hill on the way up). |
| K-BOOKS (CIH+SHOP) Hongdae Main | 161 Yanghwa-ro, B1 | Dubbed “Korea’s K-BOOKS.” A large-scale secondhand goods shop with a lively individual-seller marketplace. |
| Wechai Goods | 75 Wausan-ro 35-gil, 2–3F | Mainly Chinese-made goods at lower prices; a good spot for offbeat finds. |
Secondhand inventory changes constantly, so the golden rule is: if you see something you want, buy it then and there. Popular and rare items carry a premium and can cost far more than their original retail price, so it helps to know the going market rate beforehand. On the flip side, merch from older, less hyped series often turns up below original price.
📍 Open in Naver Map — Lashinbang Seoul Main 📍 Open in Naver Map — K-BOOKS Hongdae
It’s Not All Shopping — Exhibitions, Art Toys, Anime Cafés & Bars
When your shopping stamina runs out, switch over to the experience side of things. This neighborhood hasn’t just grown as a retail destination — a whole ecosystem of anime culture you can see, sip, and soak in has grown alongside it.
- O Museum / DUEX — Curated anime IP exhibitions. O Museum is on the 4th floor of AK&; DUEX sits right next door in LC Tower (186 Yanghwa-ro) and has hosted exhibitions for Tokyo Revengers, Oshi no Ko, and more. Both funnel you into merch shops and photo booths after the exhibit.
- POP MART Hongdae Flagship — 56 Wausan-ro 23-gil, floors 1–3. The flagship store of the art toy brand famous for Labubu. The addictive thrill of cracking open blind boxes.
- Secret Base — 48-5 Wausan-ro 29-gil, 2F. An anime-themed cocktail bar packed with figures, serving custom character-inspired cocktails — think “Slam Dunk Hanamichi Sakuragi” (late-night hours).
- Anteiku — An anime concept restaurant in the Sinchon/Yeonnam area. The interior and menu are styled after specific anime; you can even order dishes like the kiri-mochi that Shinnosuke from Crayon Shin-chan loves.
Exhibitions rotate completely from season to season, so before you go, check each venue’s social media to see what’s currently showing and plan your route accordingly.
📍 Open in Naver Map — POP MART Hongdae Flagship 📍 Open in Naver Map — Secret Base
A Half-Day Route — Here’s How to Do It
Here’s a sample half-day itinerary anchored around Hongik University Station Exit 4:
- Start at AK& Hongdae. Work your way down from the top: new releases and pop-up events at Animate (5F), the current exhibition at O Museum (4F), figures at MegaHouse (3F).
- Pause at the Animate Café. Unpack your haul, snap that photo.
- Hit the alley select shops. JS Store → Anseodang → Brother Goods → Ainonomono, in that walking order, hunting for treasures as you go.
- Scout secondhand shops for out-of-print gems. Try your luck at Lashinbang and K-BOOKS.
- Wrap up with an experience. Blind boxes at POP MART, then a character-themed cocktail at Secret Base or an anime-inspired meal at Anteiku come evening.
On weekend afternoons, the swap meets in the park beside AK& are a spectacle in their own right. Most walking distances are 5 to 10 minutes at most, so a half-day covers the essentials, and a full day lets you fold in an exhibition at a relaxed pace.
Practical Tips Before You Go
- Use Naver Map. Google Maps’ walking directions are severely limited in Korea. Search for the Korean store names as written above; they’ll come up accurately. All the map buttons in this guide link to Naver Map.
- Weekend afternoons get seriously packed. Animate and the popular select shops can become uncomfortably crowded on weekend afternoons. For a more relaxed browse, aim for a weekday or right at opening time.
- Check photo and payment policies. Some shops, like Hoe Market, have a strict no-photography policy. Smaller independent shops are often cash-only. Chain stores like Animate accept cards and offer tax-free shopping for foreign visitors.
- Know the market rate for secondhand items. Rare and popular goods carry steep premiums. Conversely, older, less-hyped series can be a steal.
- Be a good guest. Many shops are small, independent operations — lingering too long or being loud is genuinely disruptive. For fan gatherings like the park swap meets, ask before you photograph anyone.
- Stock differs from Japan. Due to local licensing and import logistics, the selection and release dates may not match what’s available in Japan. If you’re after a specific new release, check the shop’s social media for stock updates first.
The Bottom Line: Seoul’s “Hongkihabara” — No Flight to Japan Required
Hongdae’s anime district isn’t a polished tourist attraction — it’s a lived-in, real-deal commercial hub where Korean fans in their teens and twenties hang out every week. Browse the latest releases at Animate on the 5th floor of AK&, go treasure-hunting through the alley select shops, unearth out-of-print gems at the secondhand stores, and cap it all off with a custom cocktail dedicated to your favorite character at an anime bar — the days of wishing you were in Akihabara are over. Just remember: most of these are small, independent businesses, so be the kind of respectful, low-key guest that helps keep this pilgrimage site alive for years to come.
Sources
- Esquire Korea: Why the Area Around Hongik University Station Became an Anime Paradise (2025-07-03) — esquirekorea.co.kr
- Otaku Daily Life Blog: The Hongdae Goods Shop Map Every Fan Needs to Know — o.yhj9855.com
- Namu Wiki: Animate — namu.wiki · AK Plaza Hongdae — namu.wiki
- AK Plaza Hongdae Official / Trip.com Store Guide — kr.trip.com
- Figurepresso — figurepresso.com