According to the animation industry report of The Association of Japanese Animations, the overseas market is still the project with the most apparent growth rate. After the official opening of Japan for tourism, the sales of animation physical stores and related products have increased significantly.
Osaka, Japan (ADH News) – According to the animation industry report of The Association of Japanese Animations, The 2021 Anime Market Reached 2.74 Trillion Yen, 113.3% of the Previous Year. Among them, overseas occupies the largest share, accounting for 47.8%. The second place is Merchandising, accounting for 24.1%. The third place is The Pachinko and the like, accounting for 11.1%. The foreign monetary influx predominantly emanates from motion pictures, televised broadcasts, videograms, and MD renditions, constituting a comprehensive portfolio of cinematic and televisual ventures. Since 2015, overseas sales have continued to be the most important income in the animation market, which shows that Japanese animation is becoming more and more popular with overseas audiences.
The exportation of animated narratives and cinematic opuses to multifarious global territories not only augments the financial valuation of the animation sphere but concurrently propels the current of tourists towards Japan, fostering a noticeable augmentation in the trade of animation-linked commodities. With the formalization of liberalized tourism, the influx of overseas tourists has experienced a palpable boost. Among the multifaceted stimuli steering the voyages of innumerable tourists toward Japanese precincts, animation holds its ground as a paramount determinant. Evidenced by the establishment of commercial emporiums, gastronomic establishments, leisure spaces, amusement parks, and even skyscrapers dedicated to animation, the railway network and its encompassing diversity of train services are fervently embraced by animation devotees.
The 13th floor of Osaka Umeda Daimaru Department Store gathers the most famous animation stores, including Pokémon Center, Nintendo, ONE PIECE MUGIWARA STORE, CAPCOM STORE & CAFE UMEDA, TOMICA Shop, and PLARAIL Shop. During the summer vacation, many people flooded in, and the customers had to go to the scene to collect tickets for the reserved time, waiting an average of 1-3 hours. There are tourists from various countries in the store, which shows that the animation store has become an important tourist attraction for overseas tourists to Japan.
In addition, Pokémon Cafe is also very popular among fans. Every meal in the cafe is designed concerning the appearance of each Pokémon. The meals are not only cute but also delicious. No matter in the Pokémon restaurant in Tokyo or Osaka, there are many Pokémon dining with fans and Pikachu dancing on the spot, bringing great joy to the children. It is not easy for fans to dine at the Pokémon Cafe. They need to make reservations on the official website a month in advance. Many people said: “This cafe is difficult to make reservations.”
In addition to all kinds of fantasy, adventure, and cute characters, Japanese animation is better at designing real-world vehicles, ships, etc., into anime characters. In the anime called Shinkalion, all the names of train stations, trains, and places in Japan are taken from all over Japan. The shapes of the characters are also designed concerning the conditions of different Shinkansen trains. Japan has a complete railway system, which makes it easy for tourists to complete self-guided travel. Railway animation fans can meet the expectations of animation fans and railway fans by taking various means of transportation, participating in peripheral activities, and visiting multiple railway museums. In the Kyoto Railway Museum, a tourist from Taiwan said: “I finally saw this character and the railway headquarters in the anime, and I feel super excited.”
The overseas market of Japanese animation is growing year by year, and various animation content can be seen on TV or movies in many countries. In Japan, the animation market has exquisite physical stores and diversified peripheral products, which will attract more and more anime fans to travel to Japan. The recovery of tourism will increase the market value of the animation. Conversely, the popularity of energy will also bring positive forces to the tourism market.
