Society Japanese model shop operator offers custom figurines for grieving pet owners

A long-established plastic model shop in Matsuyama is offering grieving pet owners a way to remember their animals through custom-made 3-D figurines. Fuji Kyozai recently launched a crowdfunding campaign for its new service, aimed at people coping with the loss of a pet. Under the company's "Uchinoko Paint Figure" service, customers submit a single photograph of their pet. A 3-D figurine is then produced from the image, though owners must paint the model themselves to complete it.


The company said the process was designed to help owners work through their grief by encouraging them to focus carefully on the appearance and details of the pets they had lived with. The idea came from Tamura Yohei, 42, who is expected to become the third-generation president of Fuji Kyozai. He said many businesses already offered pet figurines, but he wanted to leverage the company's background as a model shop by having customers paint the figures themselves.

The company produces data for a 3-D model from a photo sent by a customer. It creates a figurine using a 3-D printer and sends it to the customer with a set of paints and brushes, which are carefully selected utilizing know-how from the model shop. Then the owner paints the figurine to complete the product while thinking about the pet. [...] Fuji Kyozai came up with the "Uchinoko" service as its new business venture, which is offered as part of the crowdfunding campaign that began on April 3 ahead of its general release. Tamura stays in contact with customers to create 3-D data of their pets. "When I received a request for an unexpected animal, I studied its skeleton on the internet to understand its body structure," he recalled. While exchanging messages with clients, he keenly feels how deeply they loved their pets.

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The "Uchinoko" service is offered on the crowdfunding site Makuake until May 30, after which Fuji Kyozai will offer the service to the public. A small size (about 3.5 centimetres) is priced at 3,800 yen ($24), including tax, a medium size (6.5 cm) at 6,800 yen and a large size (10 cm) at 13,800 yen. Data production costs and a paint set are included.