Ask John: Should Anime Fans Run an Anime Store?

Question:
Should anime fans open an anime store? Starting a business is a tremendous undertaking for anyone, which requires devotion, passion, responsibility, and most of all: persistence. Most of these characteristics are shared by many hard-core otaku. But does being a fan fit in with the prerequisites for being an entrepreneur, or is it, in fact, true that being a fan can hinder success for the business owner?

Answer:
I first want to stress that my advice should be taken in perspective. I work for an anime store, but I don’t run an anime store. I have very little business sense, and have no interest in attempting to run my own anime retail company. Therefore, any statements I make about managing an anime business are statements from someone with no practical experience in that particular field, and not even any interest in that field. However, as an employee of an anime retail company, I do have some insight into the anime retail business that I can pass on.

Rather than persistence, I think that the most vital components in starting and building an anime store are determination and intelligence. Running any small business requires a tremendous amount of work and emotional stress. Everyone makes mistakes, and mis-steps are probably inevitable in the process of building a business, but persistence is useless if one has no success or ability to manufacture success. Personal experience has convinced me that it’s not necessary to be an anime fan to successfully run an anime business, and being a devoted fan with lacking discipline is virtually guaranteed to result in a failed business. A fan with aspirations of running an anime store must always concentrate on the customers’ interests, and put the customer’s desires first, which can be a very difficult thing for hardcore anime fans to do.

With that said, I do believe that devoted anime fans can operate a successful anime store. In fact, America’s two largest anime retail companies, AnimeNation and Right Stuf International, are run by owners who started out as anime fans. Being an anime fan allows a retailer to understand and respond to his/her market, and make adjustments to the business that respond to market conditions and demands. An experienced businessman may have certain advantages in establishing a store over an inexperienced anime fan, but an anime fan will have other advantages over someone with little knowledge of the product and market.

Speaking as someone who’s able to live a dream by being, basically, a professional anime fan, I’m eager to encourage other anime fans to pursue their goals and dreams. At the same time, I’d feel irresponsible if I didn’t provide some sobering advice as well. Although we haven’t heard a lot of discussion about the condition of the American anime market recently, there are still concerns to be aware of. According to ICv2 News, the American home video industry shrunk in 2005 for the first time in 25 years. The nationwide chain of Media Play stores are closing and anime distributors who had products in Media Play stores might not get paid for that merchandise in the foreseeable future. Target stores nationwide have already ceased carrying anime. Numerous domestic publishers announced last year plans to scale back their manga releases this year. All signs suggest that anime sales in America are not a limitless frontier. So my advice to anyone seeking to invest in an anime business in America is to start small and ideally stock a niche market product or target a specific consumer market. Trying to delve into “anime” in general may be dauntingly difficult in the face of limited potential sales and competition from bigger, more established retailers. Starting small, with a niche product, minimizes the potential loss if the business doesn’t succeed, and offers a better probability of cornering the market and securing a maximum number of potential sales.

As an anime collector myself, I’m always interested in new outlets to buy anime merchandise from. I’m also eager to see more American fans deepen their appreciation for and involvement with contemporary Japanese art and culture. But I want to warn fans that anime is far from a guaranteed path to success. There aren’t as many anime fans in America as many fans believe, and the anime fans that do exist in America don’t buy as much anime, nor spend as much money on anime merchandise as most American fans presume. I don’t want to discourage anyone, but anyone aspiring to create an anime company should approach the endeavor with appropriate gravity, and pay close attention to circumstances that could affect an anime company.