What AnimeCon.org does

AnimeCon.org, operated by Chrono Pop LLC, is a privately held event management organization founded in January 2010 by CEO Ryan Kopf that produces a portfolio of eight annual anime and pop-culture conventions across the US Midwest. The portfolio spans events of varying scale: Anime Midwest (~20,000 attendees, Chicago/Rosemont), AniMinneapolis (Minneapolis), M.A.G.E. Con (Minneapolis), Anime-ZAP! (Peoria, IL, ~1,000 attendees), Con+Alt+Delete (Rosemont, IL), Kanpai!Con (Omaha, NE), QC Anime-zing! (Davenport, IA), and Cosplay Weekend Chicago. Conventions are held at partner venues including the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis and Crowne Plaza Rosemont and feature a consistent programming spine — rave dances with lasers and lights, a formal ball with professional instructors, cosplay contests, panels, dealer rooms, and the trademarked ConSweet food service — differentiated by city, scale, and thematic flavor.

The company's underlying technology stack is centered on the in-house cons.mx registration and ticketing platform, which handles ticket sales, attendee management, badge printing, and event check-in and is also licensed to other conventions. Supporting tooling includes custom InDesign scripts for automated program book generation and a QR-coded badge system linked to attendee accounts for registration verification and emergency tracking. The technology footprint is functional rather than AI-driven; it prioritizes operational independence from third-party ticketing providers and supports the company's multi-event workflow.

AnimeCon.org monetizes through ticket sales (tiered across early-bird, regular, and at-door pricing, with discounts for children, military, educators, first responders, and groups of 10+), dealer and artist alley booth/table fees, special ticketed events (Escape Rooms, Maid Cafes), sponsorship (UpcomingCons.com, Ani.me), and ancillary revenue from charity auctions supporting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Distribution is primarily self-serve online through cons.mx and the convention websites, supplemented by onsite cash-only registration, press passes, and a volunteer staff network that drives grassroots promotion. Customer segments include individual anime and pop-culture fans, dealers and artists, and educators/community organizations receiving free or subsidized admission.

Name

AnimeCon.org

Legal name

Chrono Pop LLC

Website

https://animecon.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

AnimeCon.org, operated by Chrono Pop LLC, organizes and operates a portfolio of eight annual anime and pop-culture conventions across the US Midwest, serving individual fans, dealers, artists, and community organizations with proprietary ticketing technology and event programming.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fan Convention Events

NAICS

Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events with Facilities (71131), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192), Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events without Facilities (711320)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Arts, Culture, Entertainment & Fan Conventions Organizers (THAHABAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Beauty, Fashion & Pop-Culture Conventions (MPAGAFAG), Retail, Consumer Goods & Lifestyle Shows Organizers (THAHABAJ)

Keywords

• Anime conventions
• Fan convention events
• Convention ticketing platform
• Pop culture events
• Cosplay event management

Headquarters

HQ city

Rosamond

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Convention Ticket Sales: Primary revenue stream from selling weekend and single-day convention admission badges. Pricing varies by tier (early bird, regular, at-door) with discounts for children, military, and teachers.
2. Dealers & Artists Booth Fees: Revenue from renting vendor/exhibitor spaces at conventions. Dealer booths and artist alley tables are sold at fixed prices, with additional fees for unclaimed no-show spaces.
3. Special Ticketed Events: Additional revenue from special events such as Escape Rooms, Maid Cafes, and other premium experiences that require separate tickets beyond the base convention badge.
4. Sponsorship: Revenue support from sponsors including UpcomingCons.com and Ani.me, with varying sponsorship tiers and visibility at conventions.
5. Charitable Fundraising (St. Jude's): Portions of Date Auction proceeds and charity auction income are donated to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. 10% of Date Auction income plus 100% of charity auction income supports the charity while building community goodwill.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

AnimeCon.org organizes and operates a portfolio of eight annual anime and pop culture conventions across the US Midwest, including Anime Midwest, AniMinneapolis, Anime-ZAP!, Con+Alt+Delete, M.A.G.E. Con, Kanpai!Con, QC Anime-zing!, and Cosplay Weekend Chicago. The company sells attendee badges, dealer and artist booth space, and special event tickets, and operates a proprietary in-house registration and ticketing platform (cons.mx) that is also licensed to other conventions.

Product overview

AnimeCon.org is an event management organization that operates a multi-convention portfolio of anime and pop culture events across the Midwest. The company offers a unified platform comprising multiple convention brands (Anime Midwest, AniMinneapolis, Anime-ZAP!, Con+Alt+Delete, M.A.G.E. Con, Kanpai!Con, QC Anime-zing!, and Cosplay Weekend Chicago), a proprietary registration system (Cons.mx), and an event discovery service (UpcomingCons). Each convention maintains its own identity and schedule while sharing organizational infrastructure, staff, and operational systems. The portfolio serves thousands of attendees annually across 8 annual events, with conventions ranging from intimate community events (1,000 attendees) to major regional conventions (thousands of attendees).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Anime Midwest Annual anime and pop culture convention held each July in Rosemont, Illinois near Chicago, designed for anime fans seeking major industry guests, formal ball events, rave dances with lasers and lights, and over 100 events per year.
• AniMinneapolis Annual anime convention held each May in Minneapolis, Minnesota, blending Nerdcore rap music with voice actor guests and offering hundreds of panels, video screenings, game tournaments, and cosplay events.
• Anime-ZAP! Annual winter anime convention held each January in Peoria, Illinois, positioned as one of the most affordable anime conventions, focusing on fun community events rather than celebrity guests and drawing approximately 1,000 attendees over three days.
• Con+Alt+Delete Annual end-of-year anime and video game convention held each December in Rosemont, Illinois, serving as the experimentation venue where AnimeCon.org pilots new programming (maid cafe, ConSweet food improvements, registration upgrades).
• M.A.G.E. Con Annual anime and gaming convention held in Minneapolis, Minnesota (formerly MetaCon), blending anime, gaming, sci-fi, TV, and Renaissance/Steampunk themes with voice actors, late-night dances, main stage events, and console, PC, and tabletop RPG gaming departments.
• Kanpai!Con Annual anime convention held each March in Omaha, Nebraska at the Coco Key waterpark, positioned as a fun, relaxed three-day event featuring cosplay, vendors, artists, video games, musical performances, and anime screenings.
• QC Anime-zing! Annual anime convention held in Davenport, Iowa (Quad Cities), designed as an affordable, all-ages community event focused on building local anime fandom with vendors, artists, video games, and anime screenings.
• Cosplay Weekend Chicago Recurring laid-back, community-driven cosplay event held multiple times per year in Rosemont, Illinois (Chicago), featuring exclusive photoshoots, interactive tabletop games, special guests, a vendor marketplace, and weekend admission priced at $20.
• cons.mx Registration and Ticketing Platform Proprietary in-house convention registration and ticketing platform that handles ticket sales, attendee management, badge printing, and event check-in, used by AnimeCon.org conventions and licensed to other conventions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Events running since January 2010 with consistent annual operations across 8 convention brands
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• UpcomingCons.comminorGTM or Marketing PartnerUpcomingCons.com is a current and past sponsor of AnimeCon.org conventions, providing promotional and marketing support for events across the convention network.
• Ani.meminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAni.me is a current and past sponsor of AnimeCon.org conventions, providing promotional and marketing support for the convention network.
• St. Jude Children's Research HospitalcoreOthersAnimeCon.org's designated charity partner. 10% of all Date Auction income and 100% of charity auction income is donated to St. Jude's. The Date Auction was originally created by VP Erica Wise and is now a main event at conventions, with proceeds benefiting St. Jude.
• Hyatt Regency HotelscoreOthersThe Hyatt Regency Minneapolis is the venue for AniMinneapolis and M.A.G.E. conventions. The Crowne Plaza Rosemont is the venue for Cosplay Weekend Chicago and Anime Midwest events.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Otakon: Major US anime convention operating in Washington DC and previously Baltimore. Closest comparable peer as a regional multi-day anime fan convention with similar attendee profile, programming mix (panels, dealers, artist alley, cosplay), and pricing tier structure.
• Anime Matsuri: Major anime convention in Houston with comparable programming mix and fan-focused positioning. Direct competitor in the multi-day anime convention segment operating in a different geographic market.
• ColossalCon: Multi-event anime and pop culture convention operator in Ohio. Closely comparable to AnimeCon.org as a multi-brand convention organizer running several smaller-to-mid-sized events across the Midwest, with similar community-driven positioning.
• SacAnime: Regional anime convention operating multiple events annually in Sacramento and other West Coast cities. Comparable in event format, scale, and programming mix to AnimeCon.org's portfolio approach.
• Anime NYC: Major East Coast anime convention with 50,000+ attendees, comparable in fan experience focus to Anime Midwest. Direct competitor for national-level anime fans and a benchmark for AnimeCon.org's flagship event ambitions.
• Anime Boston: Regional anime convention in the Northeast US with similar multi-day programming, voice actor guests, and attendee demographic. Operates at comparable scale to AniMinneapolis and Anime Midwest with overlapping but geographically separate audience.

Others

• Eventbrite: Large-scale event ticketing platform competing for convention registration business against AnimeCon.org's proprietary cons.mx platform. Relevant as competitive context for cons.mx's external commercialization potential.

Broad incumbents

• Fan Expo (Chicago): Multi-genre pop culture convention held in the same Chicago/Rosemont market as Anime Midwest. Comparable as a fan convention but broader in scope (comics, sci-fi, horror, anime), providing direct competition for regional fan entertainment dollars.
• Dragon Con: Major multi-genre fan convention in Atlanta with 80,000+ attendees across multiple hotels. Comparable as a portfolio-style fan convention operating multiple tracks/sub-events under one organizational umbrella, though broader in genre scope than anime.
• Anime Expo: Largest anime convention in North America, held annually in Los Angeles with 100,000+ attendees. Directly comparable in fan convention focus but operates at significantly larger scale and on the West Coast, while AnimeCon.org focuses on the Midwest with smaller-format events.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/playlist?list=PLzIp5Vav0a-0Loeqe_INRxGne64FcytOz
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/animeconorg

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about AnimeCon.org