Ita-bags began to appear in Japanese popular culture in the 2010s, and were covered by national news beginning in 2015.
[3] Spread through the international anime and manga fandom, the ita-bag fashion is also growing outside Japan.
[4] Ita-bags serve to publicly express how much their owners love a particular fictional character or media franchise.
In that respect, they are the equivalent of itasha, "painmobiles", which are cars covered with fandom-themed stickers and decals.
Ita-bags are an expensive hobby, given that some buttons are of a limited edition and command high prices.