Susaki's Beloved Character ☆ Shinjo-kun

It might be good luck to touch
Shinjo-kun’s bellybutton!
 (Saki-chan is on the left.)

Who is Shinjo-kun?
   Shinjo-kun is Susaki City’s mascot character based on the Japanese river otter, which is now considered to be extinct but was last seen in the Shinjo River, which runs through Susaki City. He wears a hat shaped like Susaki’s famous nabeyaki ramen, and sometimes he lets his fellow mascot friends who are other mascots wear his hat.

Shinjo-kun's Big Break?
   Shijo-kun gradually became more and more well-known after being introduced as an “interesting character” by fellow mascots like Barysan, Udonnoww, and Osaki-Ichibantaro, whom he co-starred with at events. He has also been introduced by the celebrity character Funassyi as a “character about to make it big,” but Shinjo-kun himself still doesn’t feel like he’s part of the big leagues.

 

Check him out online!
   Shinjo-kun uses social media to broadcast various types of information. On his blog, you can see him out having fun in Susaki with recurring characters like the masked “Mysterious Man” and the Shinjo River fairies Suu-chan and Saki-chan. His Twitter, praised by famous bloggers, is also a must-see! He even has Twitter followers from China, Taiwan, and Korea!

 

This costume was made by a fan
 for the year of the monkey!

Shinjo-kun’s Relationship with his Fans
   Shinjo-kun has passionate fans who rush to meet him at events nationwide, and he is soon surrounded by people wherever he goes. Some fans even create costumes for him based on the theme of the event.
   One of Shinjo-kun’s favorite sayings (“mokyu☆”), and the emoji “ÒㅅÓ。)ﾉ” that he often starts his tweets with both came from fan suggestions, showing the deep relationship he has with fans. The most important thing to Shinjo-kun is making sure that all his supportive fans are having a good time.
By the middle of January of this year, Shinjo-kun had received over 1,500 New Year’s cards, and he is taking the time to handwrite responses to each and every one. He really does care about his fans’ feelings.

 

Big Events in 2016
   Shinjo-kun will be working as the navigator for the Oku Shimanto Fair, which opens on April 10th, and he will attend the kick-off event. In September, the annual “Local Character Festival in Susaski”, the largest local character event in the Shikoku-Chugoku region will take place. With a total of 65,000 registered attendees at last year’s festival, this year’s event is sure to be a hit! You may also see Shinjo-kun play the guitar (he’s quite good), so definitely come on out!

Shinjo-kun was chosen as a core member
of the Tsunami Safety Awareness Team

A Message from Shinjo-kun
   ÒㅅÓ。)ﾉ Well, here I go ☆

Shinjo-kun
   Official Website: https://www.city.susaki.lg.jp/sinjokun/
   Blog: http://sinjo-kun.jugem.jp/
   Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sinjokun
   Twitter: https://twitter.com/susaki_city_PR