In the last five years since 2014, The Pokemon Company and Yokohama City have worked together to host Pikachu Outbreak events every August, where thousands of Pikachu mascots march in the streets of Yokohama for several days.

Why is Yokohama City so insistent on hosting these events for many years? The reason is simple – results. According to an interview with Yokohama mayor Fumiko Hayashi, Pikachu Outbreak events have attracted 10.37 million people in five years, which is a lot of tourism money.

Besides people, Yokohama has received 6.9 billion yen worth of media exposure thanks to the events, out of which 5.1 billion yen of media exposure is generated outside Japan. All in all, this means the Pikachu Outbreak events have generated great results for the city, boosting its tourism.

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