The flagship store of animate Ikebukuro has been officially recognized as the largest anime shop/store in the world.
The huge shop has nine above-ground floors and another two basement floors, totalling 8,554.673 m² (92,081 ft² 105 in²) of shop space. That is way bigger than an American football field, which is 5,351 m².
The shop is full of anime merchandise, comic books, videos, and games. In addition, its "Space Galleria" (the eighth floor) is entirely dedicated to exhibition and the "animate Theater" on the second basement floor is a theatre with up to 208 seats.
Before opening hours, the street outside the shop is often full of customers waiting to get in.
However, it was not like that when animate Ikebukuro began back in 1983. So, how then did the shop become the world's largest? We asked Yutaka Takahashi, founder, representative director and chairman at Animate Holdings Co., Ltd.about their 41-year history.
How it began
When Takahashi entered the industry, market for anime and anime merchandise were both small compared to today. The sort of anime merchandise was different also.
He said: "There were only toys back then. Merchandises were for children. But after 20 years or so, children who watched animes grow up, and they reminisce the past and start looking for anime merchandises. Not toys, but something they want to keep for themselves."
While there were fans looking for such merchandise, there were not many shops that catered to them. That's how animate Ikebukuro opened as an anime specialty store.
Takahashi says he worked hard to find merchandise that fans were looking for.
"Sponsors of animes were making toys or other products intended for kids, so I was looking for mature fans. Animation cels, collection of settings, storyboards, and whatnot. I was everywhere, including anime production houses, looking for them."
Growth of anime fans and shops
animate Ikebukuro became increasingly popular, and the shop had three floors by the 90s; in 2000, the shop moved to a nine-story building to become the first animate Ikebukuro Flagship Store . 12 years later, the shop moved again to where it is located today.
animate also opened branches, and aimed to open at each prefecture in Japan. One of the reasons why there were able to expand was thanks to changes to anime fans.
Takahashi continued: "Customers used to be deep anime and comic enthusiasts. However, in addition to those enthusiasts, couples also come to our stores for a date."
animate Ikebukuro Flagship Store's aim was to create a shop that is fun to visit, even if you don't end up making a purchase. With that aim, they simply did not have enough space. But one day, they received some good news.
"The building next door was going to vacate. Toshima ward (local government where the shop is located) was planning to close down the council building and redevelop the nearby areas. With that, its healthcare centre (which was in the building next to us) was also going to move. We made a proposal about what we would like to do with the vacated building, and the local government approved it. That allowed us to expand our store."
The floor area of the shop doubled as a result. Plus, two new underground floors meant that animate was also able to create a theatre.
I felt that we were finally able to create a place where customers can wander in and we'll always have something for them to enjoy. That I was really happy about. - Yutaka Takahashi
Road to becoming a record holder
With the combination of two buildings, animate Ikebukuro Flagship Store became a giant anime shop. They then set their eyes on a world record.
It was the staff working at animate who came up with the idea of applying for a Guinness World Records title. Takahashi, who had special affinity to Guinness World Records since childhood, backed up the staff's initiatives.
First, they had to get an architectural drawing of the buildings, and define the shop area. The meaty part was the measurement process. A registered architect, land and house investigator, and surveyor were all there to measure and approve the shop area. One of the staff, who witnessed the intense approval process, told us the whole experience was "electrifying".
And it was official: animate Ikebukuro Flagship Store became a record holder. Takahashi - who never thought of even coming close to a Guinness World Records title - thought first and foremost about fans who supported the shop throughout its history.
"There were anime fans in the early days (they were smaller in number compared to today), and there were anime fans who could not openly express their love of anime as easily as we do today. They were the ones who nurtured our shop. I am so grateful if they feel proud about us achieving the record."
Driving force of the world's largest anime shop
Takahashi, who is one of the leading figures of the anime merchandise industry, is also a huge anime fan. However, his interest is more about entertaining people who come to the shop than being entertained by anime.
"I stand at the shop, and I see customers full of smiles as soon as they come in, as if they just entered a treasure box. It's an irresitible feeling seeing that, when you are in this business. I can't stop," he confessed.
Furthermore, anime is an important industry for Japan, according to Takahashi.
"When I do talks overseas, I am impressed with local interpreters, who speak Japanese as well as or even better than us Japanese natives. So I ask them how they learned Japanese so well, they say they learned through anime. People who came to my talks were passionate as well, because they are interested in Japan and its anime culture. Simply put, they all love Japan."
"There is no oil to drill or metal to mine in Japan," he added. "However, anime can be a great resource for us. And good thing about this resource is it will not cause war. Rather, friendship grows from it. From that point of view, anime is a wonderful resource for Japan, and I'm happy to be a part of it."
Anime has a potential for creating great friendships. And Takahashi says he wants to continue providing a forum for such friendships to blossom.
"I believe that animate Ikebukuro Flagship Store will make customers believe that it is indeed a record-breaking store. However, we are still moving forward, so that even more manga and anime fans around the world will enjoy the experience we provide. I know fans already know a lot of things, but we endeavour to create new discoveries. We look forward to seeing you here."
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