Pinoy fans of Marvel Comics may have just found a new home with the grand opening of the KAPOW! Universe store over at Glorietta 5, Makati.

The Philippines is, after all, the second-biggest market for Marvel products outside of the U.S.

The very first Asian KAPOW! store opened in Beijing last year, born from a collaboration between Walt Disney Fashion and Consumer Products and creative agency MINDstyle International.



Local group Collecticons, Inc. (the current managers of local comic book store Filbar's) acquired the franchise rights to the store brand. It is now an authorized reseller of Marvel Comics merchandise such as apparel, comic books, and collectibles, making it the first store of its kind in the Southeast Asian region that celebrates everything Marvel.





Growing up on Marvel comics

“It started when we were trying to look for more merchandise when we took over Filbar's,” Collecticons, Inc. president Jacob Cabochan tells Yahoo SHE. “We wanted to be the official distributor of many brands and licenses.”

It so happened that KAPOW! was looking for franchisees. This led to negotiations with Collecticons, Inc. early in the year.

Why Marvel?

“Everybody in this country grew up reading Marvel,” chief creative officer Ivan Guerrero points out. “They watched the cartoons, and are familiar with characters.”

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

The local KAPOW! store has an interesting look. Once you get past the Iron Man statue you will spot Thor's hammer Mjolnir embedded in a pile of rock (try pulling it out), Captain America's uniform, and the Hulk's gamma ray chamber among others.

“The thinking behind it,” Guerrero shares, “was, 'What's the best way for people to feel like they're entering the Marvel Universe?'” The answer: the fictional spy agency S.H.I.E.L.D., which deals with the superheroes. The interiors seem like it can be located in a secret underground bunker, making visitors feel like they're in on a secret meant only for certain kinds of comic book fans. “You see the Hulk or Captain America from a regular participant's point of view, which is as a S.H.I.E.L.D agent.”

Each aspect of the store is closely coordinated with Disney (which owns the comic book company) and MINDstyle, from the interior design to the wording on the signposts. This cohesiveness lends itself to a true “Marvel experience” for its customers.