In
the past two years we have seen an increase of cosplay cafe events that are
happening in this country. Those who have never heard of the term would
probably be confused. How do cosplay and cafes mix?
The concept is actually based off
maid cafes in Japan. In maid cafes, customers are treated as “masters”, served
by the waitresses who are the cuter version of maids depicted in a lot of
modern Japanese media. Food is served with cute chants that the maids have to
perform with their customers before they dig in, and entertainment by the maids
is provided; stage performances, mini games, polaroid pictures, and sometimes
even some fan service.
Cosplay cafes follow the same
concept that these maid cafes have, except by having the maids be switched out
with cosplayers. They are usually event-based, as in they only operate
annually, or sometimes bi-annually, just like some cosplay events. As cosplay
cafes are not a very profitable business concept, there has been no specific
eateries that are dedicated to being cosplay cafes, hence they are more known
as cosplay café events instead.
There used to be only two to three
held in year up until two years ago when cosplay cafes could be seen popping up
left and right. They are usually started by non-profit groups or university
clubs.
I have personally observed the
growth of such cafes after being part of the first ever maid café that was held
in 2015 at Comic Fiesta itself, the biggest ACG cosplay event in Malaysia. The
reception was phenomenal, with lines that took up at least half of the event
space, filled with eager customers who wanted to experience the closest thing
they can get to an authentic Japanese maid café.
Since then, almost every cosplay
enthusiast seems to be taking up the idea to start up cosplay cafes as a way to
bring the community closer.
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