Manekineko Ai is an online shop run out of Osaka, sending carefully chosen pieces of handmade Japanese craft to homes around the world. We have been doing this since 2012.
What we care about most is craft that is meant to be used — a tea cup that gets filled every morning, a bowl that sees dinner every night, a tapestry that changes the quiet of a room. Not items for a display case.
Across Japan
Our shop is based in Osaka, about forty minutes by train from Kyoto, and just as close to Nara. That corner of Japan — the old capitals, and the crafts that grew up around them — is where we began, and it still feels close to us.
Over time, though, our shelves have grown wider. Today, the pieces in our shop come from many regions across Japan: porcelain from Saga and Ishikawa, tea wares from Aichi and Yamaguchi, hand-dyed cloth from Kyoto, lacquer from the Hokuriku coast, and woodwork and glass from further afield.
We are not the makers ourselves. What we do is choose pieces we feel are worth passing on, and share a little of their story — where they come from, how they are made, and how they are meant to be used — with those who are drawn to them.
How We Began
The name of our shop comes from our founder, Ai. She grew up in Katano, a quiet town in northern Osaka between Kyoto and Nara, and was taken to local craft markets from an early age.
Later, while working abroad, she came to see how deeply Japanese makers were appreciated outside Japan — sometimes more than many of us at home realise. What began as sending a few pieces to friends overseas gradually grew into something more.
Manekineko Ai was founded in 2012.
Our Team
The team behind the shop is based in Japan and beyond. You are welcome to write to us in whichever language feels most natural — we will find our way.
We do our best to answer questions about craft techniques, regional differences, and how each piece might be used. If you are choosing something for a celebration, for someone special, or for a particular moment in daily life, please feel free to write to us.
We would rather help you find the right piece than rush you through a checkout.
When You Can Reach Us
- Online orders: 24 hours a day, every day.
- Office hours: 09:00–17:00 Japan Time, Monday through Friday. Closed Saturday, Sunday, and Japanese public holidays.
- Reply: messages receive a reply within one business day, usually the same day if sent during Japan hours.
For shipping, payment, customs duties, and packaging questions, please see our Shopping Guide. For anything else — a piece you would like to order, an event you are shopping for, a question about a maker — please contact us directly.
For more details about our company and business information, please visit our Company Page.
We hope that, through us, a piece of Japanese craft that was made with patience in a workshop can find a long and useful home with you.
— Ai and Team Manekineko Ai