After more than 18 years publishing manga in the U.S., San Francisco— based Viz LLC is poised to take advantage of a fast-growing U.S. manga market. In 2004 the house switched its distribution to Simon & Schuster in a move that will step up manga's presence in the bookstore market. In the coming year, the house plans to expand its list and educate the bookstore and the library market about manga.
Viz (www.viz.com) publishes more than 300 manga titles a year, among them such bestselling series as Rurouni Kenshin, Yu-Gi-Oh, Ramna 1/2 and Inuyasha. Viz also distributes anime on DVD and publishes Animerica magazine, a fan magazine about anime and manga, and Shonen Jump, a popular monthly anthology of manga serials, which boasts a circulation of more than 175,000.
An early publisher of U.S. manga, Viz has been instrumental in the rapid growth of manga in the U.S. Seiji Horibuchi, its current CEO, and Satoru Fuji founded the company in 1986. Viz is a wholly owned subsidiary of two of Japan's biggest publishing houses, Shogakukan and Shueisha. The company has about 100 employees at its San Francisco headquarters.
Liza Coppola, v-p sales and marketing, praised the new distribution deal (which began in June) and predicted still more growth in a fast-growing category. "The change has given us a closer relationship with the buyers. It's giving us instant feedback from our customers," said Coppola. Viz has more than 2,000 titles on its backlist and in 2004 increased the number of titles it published to a level "on par with what Tokyopop did in 2004," she said.
In the coming year, she said, Viz intends to expand "beyond traditional manga" into art books, character profile books and ani-manga—manga titles created using anime cells. The house may even experiment with novelizations, she said; "it's a possibility. We're looking to grow in all sorts of ways." The line of art books (among them the Art of Inuyasha), Coppola said, will be released under a separate Viz imprint. Hot titles for 2005 include several manga adaptations of the works of anime legend Hayao Miyazaki (My Neighbor Totoro) as well as Descendants of Darkness by Yoko Matsushita, FullMetal Alchemist by Arakawa Hiromu and ani-manga adaptations of Ghost in the Shell 2:Innocence (Feb.) and several Inuyasha titles (Nov. and Jan.)
Coppola also hinted that, like Tokyopop, Viz may start experimenting with original manga creators. "But we want to be smart about it. We've been approached, but we want the right fit. There's still so much content available to us from Japan."
Asked about returns in a market that has seen a dramatic increase in titles, she said, "We haven't see anything outside of the norm." Viz distributes about 20 anime series (among them Inuyasha, Pokémon and Ramna 1/2). "There's synergy with manga," she said, "but manga is very different, and it's a faster growing market than anime." Coppola also pointed to merchandising—bags, T-shirts, calendars, action figures, playing cards and much more—"It's a critical part of our business. We get sales that otherwise would go to eBay."
Viz has also been active in educating the market. The publisher uses a rating system to alert parents, teachers and librarians to the age levels of its books. Viz uses category definitions (action, shojo, editor's choice, etc.) to help buyers understand the different kinds of manga available. Viz also offers a small booklet offered for free to retailers, librarians and consumers called Manga/Anime 101, which gives a history of manga and anime and describes the international market for both.
"We're going to work to grow this market," said Coppola. "There's so much demand. Wholesalers, librarians and store buyers all have eyes on this category."
