Variety shop “Damira”~Tokyo’s best well-kept-secret place~

Tokyo, as you know, has tons of thousands of interesing places for tourists to visit. However, those places(so-called ‘tourist spot’) you may find on the internet or in a guidebook are too famous for everyone and always crowded with tourists. 

It is true these places are worth visiting one in your lifetime, but if you are a dilettante (like me) looking for something different, or have come to Japan many times getting bored of normal tourist spot, you must visit “Damira” exclusively selling “Daming(駄民具)” in Nogata culture center. 

Variety shop “Damira(ダミラ)”

This is what Damira looks like:

getting closer

What is “Daming(駄民具)”?

駄民具(Daming) is composed of two words: 「駄」= “crappy, useless” and「民具」= “everyday articles, toys”. This Japanese word is a coined one by the owners of the shop so that we can’t find it in the Japanese dictionary. It’s a completely original term exclusively made for the stuff sold here. 

In their official twitter account, they define Daming more concisely: 

駄民具3箇条
1 親に捨てられがち
2 無駄な物だと解っていても欲しい
3 手にすると絶滅危惧種を保護したような気持ちになる
─しょうもない雑貨やパチモン駄玩具 ダサ土産など…時には虐げられ、必ずしも必要とされない哀れな物達…そんな駄目で無駄なあらゆる物を我々は『駄民具』と呼ぶ。

— 駄民具のダミラ (@damingnimad) 2016年2月28日

1. Tend to be thrown away by mom
2. I know it’ s a waste of money, but want it
3. Feel like I protected an endangered species when I got it

Damira is run by a couple, one in charge of the first floor, and the other in charge of the second floor, creating two different artspaces. 

・First floor~selling Daming~

posters on the wall, LP records, GachaGacha, flowers, mirorr boll, T-shirt….

When I was at the shop talking with the onwer, 

Real YA〇〇ZA has come to this shop once before to buy a tatoo T-shirt.

a large volume of infomation on the left wall

Looking up

・Second floor~world “Shock” report~

The second floor is run by the other owner and you have to pay 200yen to go up. 

Looking up

Summary

What did you think of this place? If you are interested in visiting here, don’t hesitate to come. The couple is really friendly and welcomes anyone. You can also take as many photos as you want for Instagram. 

Please check the calendar before you visit. 

【See you！再见！】中野高円寺からはバスが便利☆
○：営業日
◎：イベント営業
△：短縮営業or休業
Ｘ：完全休業
他：地名は外部催事
・Daming shop DAMIRA
・NogataBunkaMarket 5-30-5 Nogata Nakano Tokyo#ダミラ #駄民具ダミラ #野方 #野方文化マーケット pic.twitter.com/OajtGtFsce

— 駄民具のダミラ (@damingnimad) 2018年2月13日

Access

About 20 minutes from Shinjuku with Seibu-Shinjuku Line. You can also walk from Chuo-Line Koenji station(about 1.5km).

ちなみに駄民具はYahooショッピングでも購入することが出来ます。来店できない方はこちらから商品をチェックしてみましょう。