Best Buy Cuts Anime Titles Down To Top Sellers Only

Best Buy is about to dramatically change its anime strategy, eliminating most anime from nearly half its stores, according to an industry source. The change will focus Best Buy’s anime efforts on those stores that have historically done best with the category, and nearly eliminate anime in stores that have produced a disproportionate share of anime returns.

The new strategy will kick off March 1st, when 50% off anime closeout sales will begin in over 460 stores nationwide. After the sales end on March 21st, those stores will offer only around 20 core anime SKUs.

Over 500 Best Buy stores will continue to carry over 100 anime SKUs, and roughly the top 200 anime stores in the Best Buy chain will carry large scale anime assortments similar to what they’re carrying now. The move is expected to retain most of the chain’s anime sales, and perhaps even improve sales in the stores with larger assortments due to fewer stock-outs and deeper inventory.

Of national mass merchants, Best Buy carries the largest anime assortments now, and that won’t change. And Best Buy is easily the largest single seller of most anime titles not carried by Walmart, and that also won’t change as a result of these moves.

For fans in those areas served by Best Buy stores that are cutting their anime assortments, there are a lot fewer alternatives than there were when Best Buy started carrying more anime a few years back. Many comic and game stores have cut their anime offerings and video stores have been closing at a rapid rate. So unless other brick and mortar retailers increase their selections in areas where Best Buy is cutting back, online retailers may be the only option for fans wanting a broader selection of anime in some areas.

Source: icv2.com

Projected Manga Releases Down in 2009

The number of volumes of manga that publishers are planning to release in 2009 is down nearly 10% from the number actually released in 2008 according to a survey conducted by ICv2 for the ICv2 Guide #62–Anime and Manga. In the ICv2 manga survey at the end of 2007 publishers indicated that they planned to publish 1,731 volumes of manga, an 18% increase over the 1,468 volumes released in 2006, but the actual number of manga released in 2008 appears to be around 1,356 as publishers cut titles during the second half of the year. The total from ICv2’s 2009 Manga Survey indicates that publishers are planning to release 1,224.

After a solid first three quarters of 2008, independent retailers report that sales of manga slowed during the fourth quarter, and the major book chains also cut their graphic novel and manga orders for Q4 (see “Bookstores Feel the Pain”). Declining sales have put pressure on publishers that has manifested itself in layoffs at some publishers (see “Tokyopop Says Worst Retailing Environment”) and the decision to shut down Broccoli Books (see “Broccoli Books Shuts Down”).

The North American anime market has been suffering for several years now, and attrition has reduced the number of players. In the new Guide, ICv2 analyzes both the positive (the strength of the remaining players, the lowering of licensing fees and a reduction in what was, given the size of the market, a surfeit of releases) and the negative (continued high levels of illegal downloading, a shrinking anime footprint on American TV, the move away from packaged media toward Internet distribution) trends affecting the American anime industry.

For the full ICv2 Top 25 Manga Properties from this issue, see “ICv2 Top 25 Manga Properties Fall 2008.”

For the full ICv2 Top 10 Anime Properties from this issue, see “ICV2 Top 10 Anime Properties Fall 2008.”

For information on the release of ICv2 Guide #62: Manga/Anime, and information on how to get the ICv2 Guide, see “ICv2 Releases ‘ICv2 Guide #62: Manga/Anime’.”

Source: icv2.com

Thanksgiving Week Graphic Novel Sales Drop 14.7%

Bookstores and other retailers tracked by Nielsen’s BookScan service sold 14.7% fewer graphic novels in Thanksgiving week 2008 as compared to Thanksgiving week in 2007. Unit sales tracked by the service for the week ending November 30, 2008 were around 244,000, as compared to sales of 286,000 for the week ending November 25, 2007, according to information provided to ICv2 by Nielsen.

The drop in graphic novel sales compares to an increase of 6.0% for books over-all from BookScan (as reported by Publishers Weekly). That increase was in the midst of steep declines in book sales in the weeks running up to Thanksgiving week, so wasn’t a sign of health as much as a sign that eventually consumers will have to do some holiday shopping.

A couple of caveats on these graphic novel numbers. First, pieces aren’t dollars. As the top of the graphic novel bestseller list has become more accommodating to non-manga titles recently, the mix has moved toward higher cover prices, which may mean an increase in the average cover price that could help offset some declines in piece sales. Second, there’s an increasing amount of graphic novel activity off the graphic novel charts, as publishers seek to group their kids or young adult titles in those departments, rather than in the graphic novel department. Third, the comic store market appears to be behaving differently from the bookstores. And last, one week does not a season make.

But despite those caveats, there have definitely been some declines in graphic novel sales in bookstores this fall as the economic crisis has taken hold, and these numbers from the kickoff of the holiday shopping season confirm it.

We asked a number of industry figures to give their comments on these numbers and the over-all trends. Kuo-Yu Liang, VP Sales and Marketing at Diamond Book Distributors, shared his view, which includes a number of key publishers (see “DBD’s Liang on Holiday Graphic Novel Sales”), with more to come tomorrow. Del Rey declined comment.

Source: icv2.com