The World's Largest One Piece Store Is Opening in LA — and It's All About the Straw Hat

The Largest One Piece Store in the World Is Opening in LA — and It's All About the Straw Hat

I was scrolling through my feed when I saw the announcement and nearly dropped my phone. The world's largest official One Piece merchandise store is opening in Los Angeles this fall. Not Tokyo. Not Osaka. Los Angeles.

Here's what you need to know.

The Store That Changes Everything

The ONE PIECE MUGIWARA STORE — which translates to "Straw Hat Store" — is landing at Westfield Century City in fall 2026 . This isn't just another anime shop. According to Toei Animation, it's the largest official One Piece merchandise store in the world .

Until now, Mugiwara Stores have been exclusive to Japan and other parts of Asia . This is the first permanent US outpost. American fans can finally experience the official store without crossing the Pacific . The store will offer exclusive merchandise you won't find anywhere else, original animation artwork, and a special in-store video designed to immerse visitors in the world of Monkey D. Luffy and the Straw Hat crew . The company says the experience is meant to offer fans "new discoveries with every visit" .

To mark the announcement, the store launched official Instagram (@onepiece_mugiwara_la) and X (@OP_MugiwaraLA) accounts . The countdown has officially begun.

The Straw Hat Has Never Been More Powerful

Here's where this intersects with a much bigger story.

The Straw Hat Jolly Roger — the black flag with the grinning skull wearing Luffy's hat — has become a global symbol of resistance for Gen Z . It has appeared at protests in Indonesia, Nepal, Madagascar, the Philippines, India, France, and Mexico .

In Indonesia, protesters raised the flag instead of the national flag during Independence Day protests . In Nepal, protesters draped it over government gates as they helped topple the prime minister . In India, students carried it at Jantar Mantar protests over education reforms .

The flag appeared in Minneapolis in early 2026 at an anti-ICE protest . The same flag, the same symbol, halfway around the world.

Why? Because Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates, in the story, fight against corrupt authority and liberate entire countries . As one protester put it: "The Straw Hat pirates symbolize freedom, liberty—the spirit that you have to oppose the unjust authority" .

Why This Matters for Straw Hat Sellers

If you sell straw hats, this is the most visible moment for the silhouette since the One Piece live-action series dropped.

The store is literally named after the hat. The flagship is literally built around the iconic object you're selling. The timing couldn't be better. Millions of fans will be making pilgrimages to this store, and they'll be hyper-aware of the straw hat as a cultural object.

The hook for your product: "The official Mugiwara Store is opening in LA. But the straw hat — the actual physical object — has been here the whole time."

The Perfect Storm

This announcement comes on the heels of One Piece Night at Dodger Stadium, where over 54,000 fans packed the ballpark on July 2, 2026, setting a new MLB attendance record for the season . The first 40,000 fans received exclusive straw hats and One Piece card game cards — items that quickly became hot collectibles, with secondary market listings reaching $600 to over $1,000 .

The store launch is part of a broader "kidult" collectibles trend entering the US market . Fans aren't just buying merchandise. They're buying into a world.

One Final Thing

The MUGIWARA STORE is opening in LA this fall. It's the largest one in the world. And it's named after the hat you sell.

That's a pretty good reason to put a straw hat in front of your customers right now.

Are you planning to visit the MUGIWARA STORE when it opens? ‍☠️