Takashimaya's annual summer gift season — known as Ochugen (お中元) — is kicking off with in-store reception beginning June 1 (Monday) at Kansai locations and June 4 (Thursday) at Kanto locations. The Takashimaya Online Store is already accepting orders, with a catalog of up to approximately 4,000 items available.
This year's collection spotlights three key themes: chilled new-sensation gourmet dishes designed to beat the expected summer heat, visually arresting wagashi that evoke a sense of cool through their appearance, and share-friendly party foods suited to at-home sports viewing.
2026 Trends: From Formal Gifting to Seasonal Enjoyment
The traditional concept of Ochugen as a formal thank-you gift has been evolving in recent years. More shoppers now treat the season as an opportunity to enjoy limited-edition summer foods, whether as a personal treat, a pick-me-up for close friends and family, or a seasonal share with a group. Takashimaya's 2026 lineup leans into this shift, presenting the collection as a seasonal food event rather than purely a ceremonial exchange.
Feature 1: "Chilled Evolution" Gourmet — New-Sensation Cold Dishes
Against a backdrop of predicted extreme heat in summer 2026, this year introduces a dedicated feature on dishes best enjoyed cold. Alongside cool sweets from popular patisseries, several savory items are making their debut as chilled-to-eat dishes — a first for the lineup.
Yokohama Bay Sheraton Hotel & Towers — Summer Chef's Soup Set of 5 varieties, ¥6,480
(Shipping included · Frozen · Takashimaya exclusive)
Five original soups designed to taste great hot or cold, developed collaboratively by the hotel's French, Japanese, and Chinese cuisine chefs. Highlights include a French chef's peach vichyssoise and tomato cream soup, a Japanese chef's corn soup drawn out with bonito-kombu dashi, and a Chinese chef's winter melon and white wood ear mushroom steamed soup. Each captures a different facet of summer ingredients.
Tokyo Nihonbashi Muromachi · Hira-chan — Two Varieties of Cold Summer Oden, ¥5,400
(Shipping included · Frozen · Takashimaya exclusive)
Oden is typically associated with winter, but chefs Ippei Matsumoto and Yamato Neuchi — who operate French restaurant "Rape" and innovative Japanese restaurant "Hira-chan" — have reinterpreted it as a chilled summer dish. The set pairs a delicate "Japanese-style white oden" with a seafood-rich "Western-style red oden," bringing together Japanese and French techniques in a single box.
Miyagi · Saiyoshi — Chilled Inari, 3 Varieties, ¥5,940
(Shipping included · Frozen · Takashimaya exclusive)
From "Kanae · Saiyoshi," the restaurant arm of Kesennuma's Saiyoshi, comes a new take on inari sushi. The tofu pockets are soaked in a saury-based broth, and the fillings — which include a signature saury and shiso yam-steamed inari, a smooth tofu and shrimp inari, and a pork shabu-style inari with fresh yuzu and sesame — each carry their own distinct personality.
Cool Sweets from Leading Patisseries
Pierre Hermé Paris — Infiniment Passion Coeur de Lait, ¥5,400
(Shipping included · Frozen · Takashimaya exclusive)
An entremet by Pierre Hermé evoking summer sunshine, built around a generous passion fruit cream layered with rich biscuit and a refreshing jelly accent.
Toshi Yoroizuka — Vérine Tropique, ¥6,101
(Shipping included · Frozen · Takashimaya exclusive)
Three layered verrines by Toshihiko Yoroizuka: "Pêche" (peach mousse with raspberry and lychee), "Ananas" (pineapple mousse with coconut panna cotta), and "Mangue" (mango mousse with orange jelly) — each a multi-layered harmony of tropical flavors.
Katsuki Noen — Mix-It Strawberry Milk Pudding, ¥5,400
(Shipping included · Frozen)
A "drinkable" pudding made with sauce from the farm's own "Sagahonoka" strawberries blended with a gentle milk pudding base — full of fruit texture.
Cold Stone Creamery — Premium Ice Candy Set of 8, ¥4,698
(Shipping included · Frozen)
A set of cake-like decorated ice pops adorned with fruits and nuts.
Feature 2: "Adult Wagashi Treasure Box" — Sweets That Cool Through the Eyes
This feature gathers wagashi that deliver a sense of coolness through their visuals — jewel-like pieces that look as beautiful as glass art, designed for gift-giving to adults.
Toyama · Goroumaruya — Seasonal Searches: Summer Colors (kohaku candy), ¥3,996
(Shipping extra)
Kohaku candy (amber sugar) shaped to recreate glass artwork — colors and expressions shift with the angle of light, paired with cocktail-inspired flavors.
Oita · Nakatsu Confectionery Kanei — Rare Cheese Mizu Manju, ¥4,698
(Shipping included · Frozen)
Soft, translucent water-mochi encasing grape and lemon juice, topped with beautifully piped smooth cream cheese.
Ehime · Seikodo — Whole Mandarin Daifuku, ¥3,888
(Shipping included · Frozen)
Carefully selected whole Ehime mandarins wrapped together with white bean paste — sweet, juicy flavor that fills the mouth.
Kanazawa · Kashosho Takagiya — Cool Taste Paper Balloon Assortment, ¥3,348
(Shipping extra)
Round monaka wafers filled with peach- and soda-flavored wagashi jelly that can be enjoyed chilled, along with ozoni and a commemorative 100th anniversary sweet in one box.
Feature 3: "Share Gourmet" — Party Foods for At-Home Sports Viewing
With the attention on a major global football tournament this summer, the at-home viewing trend is expected to grow. Takashimaya presents a "gather · share · cheer together" theme, assembling finger foods and snacks ideal for watching sports and live events at home with a crowd.
Colton — Summer Finger Food, ¥4,104 (Shipping included · Frozen)
Eight varieties of bite-sized finger food including summer vegetable ratatouille with prosciutto, and marinated shrimp and carrot.
Pizza al Taglio — Roman Square Pizza, ¥5,400 (Shipping included · Frozen)
Roman-style pizza from a chef trained at a renowned Rome establishment — eight varieties featuring porcini mushrooms and smoked swordfish.
AND THE FRIET — Dry Frit Gift Box Mini, 12 pieces, ¥3,240 (Shipping extra)
Premium snacks developed by a French fry specialty shop in Hiroo, Tokyo, available in six flavors.
Heineken — 5-Liter Keg, ¥6,600 (Shipping extra · Limited to 300 units)
A compact home beer server requiring no electricity. Stays fresh for 30 days after tapping. Pours with a fine, creamy head. Heineken Original 5,000 ml (approx. 18 cm diameter × 29 cm tall).
Free Shipping Selection and Social Gift Service
The Takashimaya Online Store offers up to approximately 4,000 items during the gift period, of which around 1,500 carry free nationwide shipping. In an environment of rising prices, this "free shipping" category has grown in popularity — last year's free-shipping items recorded their highest sales in five years.
Additionally, the social gift service — which lets shoppers send gifts via SNS or email without knowing the recipient's home address — has expanded to cover approximately 2,300 items. The service is particularly popular for sending cold sweets and gourmet food to busy recipients, even when they are often away from home.
Schedule and Store Information
Takashimaya Online Store
Period: through August 4, 2026 (Tuesday) at 10:00 AM
(Some items available through August 9, Sunday at 10:00 AM)
(Non-Ochugen gift orders accepted through August 31, Monday at 10:00 AM)
Website: https://www.takashimaya.co.jp/shopping/gift/summergift/
In-Store Gift Centers
- Kanto stores (Nihonbashi, Shinjuku, Tamagawa, Yokohama, Omiya, Kashiwa, Takasaki): from June 4 (Thursday)
- Kansai stores (Osaka, Kyoto, Rakusei, Okayama, Semboku): from June 1 (Monday)
Average unit price (in-store): approx. ¥4,500 (same as previous year)
Catalog item count: approx. 2,000 items in the in-store catalog (combined with online store, up to approx. 4,200 items during the period)
Details and digital catalog: https://www.takashimaya.co.jp/store/special/summergift/index.html
