Anique
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2019
- HeadquartersTokyo, Japan
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
Anique firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Anique
- Legal name
- Anique株式会社
- Website
- https://anique.jp
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2019
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Anique industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Anime/Manga IP Merchandise & Experiences
- NAICS
- Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers (45912), Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, Book, and Miscellaneous Retailers (459), Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Retailers (459420)
- SIC
- Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945), Retail-Apparel & Accessory Stores (5600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Customized & Personalized Fan Gear Retail (CRAMAOAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Fan Apparel & Wearables Retail (Licensed) (CRAMAOAE), Creator Merchandise & Print-on-Demand Platforms (MPACAFAE)
Keywords
Where Anique is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Tokyo
- HQ country
- Japan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices5 records
Markets served
Anique business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Merchandise Sales: Sale of officially licensed anime, manga, and game IP merchandise through Anique Shop e-commerce platform and at pop-up events. Products include original goods with newly commissioned illustrations, apparel, home goods, and collectibles.
- Experiential Cafe Operations: Operation of physical cafe locations (洒落CAFE) in Tokyo, Fukuoka, and Osaka offering IP-themed food, beverages, and merchandise. Revenue from both in-store purchases and related goods sales.
- Online Exhibition Services: Virtual exhibition services through Anique Museum platform, featuring 3D virtual spaces and immersive digital experiences for IP celebrations and anniversaries.
- Collaboration Events: Pop-up shop and collaboration cafe events held at various locations globally, featuring limited-time merchandise and exclusive items tied to specific anime/manga releases.
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Anique product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Anique designs, produces, and sells officially licensed anime, manga, and game IP merchandise through its e-commerce platform (Anique Shop) and physical experiential cafes (洒落CAFE) in Japan. The company also delivers digital extensions including virtual exhibitions (Anique Museum), AR-enhanced merchandise experiences (Anique AR), and digital artwork collections. Anique partners with major Japanese IP holders such as Cover Corp., SEGA, and rights holders for franchises including Attack on Titan, Spy x Family, and Blue Lock to produce exclusive merchandise featuring newly commissioned illustrations.
Product overview
Anique operates a multi-platform portfolio centered on maximizing the value of Japanese anime, manga, and game IPs through both physical and digital experiences. The core offerings include Anique Shop (e-commerce for original merchandise), Anique Museum (virtual online exhibitions), Anique AR (augmented reality features), and Anique Digital Collection (digital artwork delivery). Physical expansion is driven through the 洒落CAFE experiential cafe chain with locations in Tokyo, Fukuoka, and Osaka. The company also produces the KINOKOS self-standing plush figure series and previously operated AI lain, an interactive AI service that concluded in March 2024.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Anique Shop: EC service where users can purchase items planned and produced by Anique
- Anique Museum
- Anique AR
- Anique Digital Collection
- KINOKOS
- 洒落CAFE (Share CAFE)
Products and services
- Anique Shop
Companies that use Anique
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Anique technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability2 records
Feature5 records
Anique partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Cover Corp. (hololive English)coreCover Corp. retains intellectual property rights over hololive English and its associated characters. Anique produces officially licensed 'Diner Caravan' merchandise collection featuring newly commissioned illustrations by Shugao depicting seven hololive English talents.
- VRChat Inc.coreAnique entered into official partnership contract with VRChat Inc. for digital experience offerings. The partnership enables Anique to create official VR experiences and content within the VRChat platform.
- Metaverse Creators (株式会社メタバースクリエイターズ)coreAnique established strategic business partnership with Metaverse Creators for joint development of metaverse and virtual experience services.
- Anchi株式会社 (streamart)minorAnique partnered with Anchi's streamart platform for V-tuber collaboration cafes at 洒落CAFE Harakado location, featuring virtual liver personalities with themed food and beverage offerings.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Anique competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Tokyo Otaku Mode: Online retailer specializing in anime merchandise for global fans, including figures, apparel, and collectibles. Directly comparable as a digital-first licensed anime merchandise retailer with global reach, sharing Anique's focus on serving international otaku audiences.
- Animate: Japan's largest anime/manga/game merchandise retailer with both physical stores and online sales across multiple countries. Directly comparable to Anique's core business of licensed IP merchandise retail, though Animate is much larger and primarily operates its own retail rather than licensing-driven experiential venues.
- Movic: Specializes in anime, manga, and game merchandise including figures, stationery, and lifestyle goods. Directly comparable as a licensed IP merchandise retailer, though Movic focuses on traditional retail channels rather than experiential cafés and digital platforms like Anique.
- Good Smile Company: Major producer of licensed anime figures and merchandise including the Nendoroid and figma product lines. Directly comparable as a high-quality licensed IP merchandise company, though Good Smile Company is larger, global, and more manufacturing-focused than Anique's services-and-experiences model.
- KOTOBUKIYA: Japanese manufacturer of anime figures, plastic models, and licensed character merchandise. Comparable as a premium licensed IP merchandise producer, though KOTOBUKIYA is primarily a manufacturer of physical goods rather than an experiential/IP services platform like Anique.
Broad incumbents
- Bushiroad: Major Japanese entertainment company producing trading card games, mobile games, anime, and licensed merchandise. Broader incumbent comparable to Anique's IP licensing and merchandise business, but with much larger scale, owned IP (e.g., BanG Dream!), and integrated production-to-retail capabilities.
- Bandai Namco: One of Japan's largest entertainment conglomerates producing toys, games, anime production, and licensed merchandise under owned IPs. Comparable in the licensed IP merchandise space but vastly larger, with owned rather than licensed IP, and broader entertainment business segments.
- Kadokawa: Major Japanese publisher with anime production, manga publishing, and merchandise businesses. Comparable as a Japanese content IP conglomerate, though Kadokawa primarily owns IP rather than licensing from others, and operates at significantly larger scale than Anique.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Anique social profiles
Digital presenceAnique financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Anique leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Anique subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Anique funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds4 records
Investors10 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Anique M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Anique
What does Anique do?
Anique designs, produces, and sells officially licensed anime, manga, and game IP merchandise through its e-commerce platform (Anique Shop) and physical experiential cafes (洒落CAFE) in Japan. The company also delivers digital extensions including virtual exhibitions (Anique Museum), AR-enhanced merchandise experiences (Anique AR), and digital artwork collections. Anique partners with major Japanese IP holders such as Cover Corp., SEGA, and rights holders for franchises including Attack on Titan, Spy x Family, and Blue Lock to produce exclusive merchandise featuring newly commissioned illustrations.
Is Anique a public or private company?
Anique is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Anique founded?
Anique was founded in 2019. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Anique based?
Anique is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, in the Asia region.
How does Anique make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Merchandise Sales are the primary driver. The others are experiential Cafe Operations, online Exhibition Services and collaboration Events.
Who are Anique's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Tokyo Otaku Mode, Animate, Movic, Good Smile Company and KOTOBUKIYA. Broad incumbents are Bushiroad, Bandai Namco and Kadokawa.
Does Anique have an API?
No public API is recorded for Anique.
What industry is Anique in?
Anique's product category is Anime/Manga IP Merchandise & Experiences. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAMAOAJ, Customized & Personalized Fan Gear Retail, with a secondary code of CRAMAOAE, Fan Apparel & Wearables Retail (Licensed). Its NAICS code is 45912 and its SIC code is 5945.