Since 2015, the overseas market has continued to be the most essential item in the animation market. According to the Anime Industry Report 2022, overseas market continues to grow to 47.8%.
Osaka, Japan (Periodical News) – Overseas markets occupy an essential position in the Japanese animation industry, accounting for 47.8% of the share. Merchandising took second place with a 24.1% share. The Pachinko and the like take third place with an 11.1 percent share. Overseas markets include film, TV broadcast, video, and MD production, forming a diversified portfolio of film and television projects. A consistent trend since 2015 has been that overseas operations have become the primary focus of animation, underscoring the growing enthusiasm for Japanese animation among foreign audiences.
The dissemination of animated content and motion pictures across international borders amplifies the animation industry’s aggregate value. It serves as a catalyst propelling tourists towards Japan, thereby contributing substantially to the surge in sales for animation-linked merchandise. The advent of formalized liberalized tourism has triggered a substantial augmentation in the influx of foreign visitors. Evident by its pivotal role, the animation is an influential determinant prompting numerous tourists to elect Japan as their preferred destination. An array of prominent spirits has manifested in establishing commercial outlets, dining establishments, recreational areas, theme parks, and even museums, along with an affinity demonstrated by animation aficionados towards railway infrastructure and a varied spectrum of train services.
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.
