Reasonably priced fukubukuro, or "lucky bags", have gained popularity at Japanese department stores as consumers have looked for ways to tighten their belts amid the recession.
Lucky bags are a Japanese New Year’s Day tradition that sees merchants sell sealed bags of various items at a substantial discount, often as high as 50 percent. As a result, shoppers stand the chance to "bag" some great deals – even if they don’t know what exactly they’re buying.