Asakusa

Asakusa Toy Co.

Japanese manufacturer of the Asakusa Thunder Robot, originally produced in 1957. The Thunder Robot is one of the most famous battery operated robots ever made. It's large, brown bullet-shape is an exacting replica of the Japanese original by the Asakusa Toy Co.

Today, times are tough for the Asakusa toy industry. Virtually all the factories have moved to China or other low wage cost countries. The wholesalers were dealt an almost fatal blow in the early 1990s by the arrival of the American toy superstore chain Toys R Us, which started buying directly from the makers. Now makers and retailers both do business at paper-thin margins.