Japan Cleaner Goes Viral with Spa-Like Service for Plushies
Sunday, 2026/05/03167 words3 minutes496 reads
At a Japanese laundry service, old and worn-out stuffed animals get special treatment. Masakazu Shimura, a cleaning professional with 30 years of experience, carefully washes soft toys using gentle methods. He gives them steam showers and brushes them softly, treating each toy like something precious.
Videos showing the detailed cleaning process at Cleaning Yonmarusan have become viral on social media. The company has attracted customers from around the world who want their beloved plushies restored. The business has grown dramatically - they now clean over 10,000 soft toys annually, compared to just 1,200 a decade ago.
Some customers even travel to Japan specifically to have their stuffed animals cleaned. While the cleaning is done, they explore the country and pick up their toys before returning home. Shimura understands that these toys carry special memories for their owners. Sometimes customers want to keep certain marks or scratches because they hold sentimental value. He treats each stuffed animal as a family member, knowing how important they are to people.
