New Japanese-inspired claw machine arcade in Eagan draws thousands
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When Zhengui “Z” Lin pitched the idea of an arcade filled with 100 claw machines, he says several Twin Cities property managers raised an eyebrow.
“They think about the old claw machine in the back corner of a Walmart,” said Lin, 23. “They think it’s like that and we’re gonna put 100 machines. And they think we’re not gonna make any money.”
But Lin said Duck Entertainment, or DUCK!, in Eagan is “a new concept” of an arcade space that has proven to be a hit since opening on Jan. 1. For the first few days, Lin said there were lines out the door. He estimated some 3,000 people visited in the first week.
The arcade closed temporarily on Jan. 23 after selling out of its plushies within the first three weeks of opening, but reopened Feb. 15.
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His “clawcade” mimics arcades found all over Asia, mostly filled with claw machines that have plushies of popular anime characters or iconic Sanrio personalities like Hello Kitty.
“We’re just trying to replicate how it would be if you went to Japan or China, just loud music. Everybody’s having fun. You buy tokens up front, and then you try to win as much as you can,” said Lin, who was inspired while on a trip to both countries.
Lin is expecting to pay more for plushies and toys sourced from China under a new 10 percent tariff imposed by the Trump administration. He said it won’t affect pricing for customers, but will have a small impact on business.
Clawcades have been on the rise in Minnesota. In the last two years, more Japanese-inspired arcades have opened in the Twin Cities, including Claw Land in Maplewood and ClawZone Park in Bloomington. Lin said his business is the largest clawcade in Minnesota with around 100 machines.
Some claw machines can be found in smaller spaces inside of malls, like Grabbit Arcade in Maplewood Mall. On weekends, kids and adults will crowd into a corner inside of Eden Prairie’s Asia Mall, where they’ll try their luck at about a dozen claw machines.
“There’s Dave and Busters, but they’re more video-game focused and you don’t really win plushies. You win tickets to trade in. Then there are smaller claw machine arcades that aren’t as big.”
Lin’s business also serves bubble tea and Korean shaved ice and has staff on stand-by to move around the plushies to make them easier to win and cheer on customers. So far, the busiest times have been the weekends and weekdays after school.
And it’s been attracting families and people of all ages.
“It’s the lights, the atmosphere, the instant satisfaction of being able to win a little something fun,” said 42-year-old Karabeth Koomen with a smile. “This is totally my scene.”
Koomen, who is Korean, visited the Eagan spot with her partner on a day off. She said she hopes more arcades like Duck Entertainment open in Minnesota.
“I’ve definitely been a person who’s never really grown up anyway, but this really just brings out more innocent joy, kind of fun,” she said.
On the way back home to Duluth, Tisha Freeman and her two kids stopped to check out the clawcade on a Wednesday afternoon. She said her 10-year-old daughter is a huge fan of Sanrio characters Cinnamoroll and Hello Kitty and her 5-year-old son loves Pokemon.
“I feel that the prizes are like, you’re more likely to win,” said Freeman, 34. “The token ratio seems pretty fair. And the kids love it.”
Her family also loves boba and made sure to order a few drinks before they left.
In the near future, Lin plans to open more clawcade locations.
“It’s just mind blowing how well it’s been turning out. We didn’t expect even 25 percent of this many people to show up. It’s been crazy,” said Lin.