New brand fuses craftsmanship with anime for markets abroad
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A logo and Akabeko folk craft from the An-Ippon traditional product brand, which combines Japanese artisanship with elements from anime and video game titles for overseas markets (Provided by Dai Nippon Printing Co.)
Dai Nippon Printing Co. has combined time-honored Japanese craftworks with anime and video game franchises to create a specialized brand that will promote Japan’s traditional artisanship abroad.
The An-Ippon product line, announced by the printing giant on June 30, aims to take full advantage of intellectual properties from the Japanese pop culture sector.
As the first step, An-Ippon released a trio of items in North America inspired by the globally renowned anime title “Naruto.”
They were: Kutani ware from Ishikawa Prefecture; Yonezawa textiles from Yamagata Prefecture; and Akabeko folk craft from the Aizu region of Fukushima Prefecture.
The specially developed articles hit the shelves at two Tokyo Anime Center outlets operated by Dai Nippon Printing in the United States. They will also become commercially available at a U.S. outlet of the Animate anime-goods retailer by the year-end.
An-Ippon is looking to expand its sales network to Europe, Asia and Australia.
Dai Nippon Printing will team with craft-producing areas in all 47 prefectures of Japan over the next three years.
That way, collaborative products featuring lacquerware, “washi” paper, ceramics, dyed and woven fabrics, and other quaint crafts, can be pitched to the international market in succession.
Dai Nippon Printing believes that handcrafted items from Japan must overcome a spate of challenges to win over international consumers, such as raising public awareness and building dedicated sales infrastructure.
Therefore, the company is using the exceptional publicizing power of intellectual properties related to Japanese anime and game titles, incorporating the worlds of these works into craft products, and promoting the creation of items with genuine artisanal value.
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