About the museum
The Lucky Cat Museum is the passion project of Micha Robertson and her husband, Jaime. They moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, from Oklahoma in 2001. Micha had always collected cat ephemera and Japanese and Asian art, but hadn’t been able to find any Lucky Cats in Oklahoma. She received her first Neko from her sister, Brenna (purchased from Tokyo Foods), and the second from the Cheviot Goodwill. Coincidentally, she and Brenna went to an anime/manga convention in California in late 2001, where she became a beta tester for Rinkya, one of the very first US companies to offer bidding services on Yahoo Japan Auctions. This opened the fortune feline floodgates, as it were, and the collection continues to grow.
In 2012, Micha’s friend Eva Clarke asked if she would be interested in sharing a space with her and Jenn Sczur at the Essex Art Studios. At the same time, the room at home that hadn’t quite become totally overwhelmed with the collection needed to be emptied for a family member. Eva and Jenn were cool with the idea of moving the collection into Micha’s third of the space. Cappel’s, her employer, provided many glass and acrylic display cases to get things organized.
In 2016, a space on the first floor of the Essex became available. It featured carpet, air-conditioning, and complete walls (all things absent from the first space). The Museum moved downstairs and reopened with regular hours.
How to visit
Admission is free. Scheduling an appointment is required to visit the museum. Sign up to visit here or send them a text at (513) 633-3923. Appointments are available on the hour from 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm from Wednesday to Saturday. Each appointment is 45 minutes long, leaving them with a clean-up time before their next guests.
A maximum of 6 guest slots are open per hour. If you are visiting with friends or family, please reserve a slot for each person in your group. You can reserve under your own name or theirs. Children under four do not require their own reservation.
Location
Essex Studios
2511 Essex Place #150
Cincinnati, OH 45206