The evolution of characters business models in Japan: Duffy, Hello Kitty, and Kumamon

摘要

The Japanese Government has promoted the "Cool Japan Initiative" to increase the economic value of elements of Japanese culture such as animation, music, art, craft and food. The aim is to stimulate their demand in emerging economies, which will lead to Japan's economic growth. The success of this initiative depends on how to leverage intellectual property. However, Japan's business in this field has fallen behind that of South Korea and other countries (Honda, 2014). The government sees promise in the characters business because the market size is relatively large. However, the market has been stagnant for more than a decade in Japan (Yano Research Institute, 2014). The main customer targets are young children; therefore, licensed products are limited to toys, snacks and foods and accessories. Moreover, most companies do not succeed in developing overseas markets. Expanding customer, industry and country segments is needed to revitalize this business.