is a Japanese media company that publishes

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

video games A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...

and trading card games. It operated a chain of retailers in Japan called ''Gamers'' which carries similar products and accessories. Broccoli is best known for the franchises, ''

Di Gi Charat is a Japanese manga and anime series created by Koge-Donbo. The series follows a catgirl named Di Gi Charat " Dejiko" who was adopted as the mascot of Broccoli's retail chain store, Gamers. The original anime series and it ...

'', '' Galaxy Angel'', '' Aquarian Age'', and '' Uta no Prince-sama''.

History

Satsuki Yamashita, the editor of Broccoli Books, explained that the company derived its president's desire to create a memorable name similar to that of

Apple Inc. Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, in Silicon Valley. It is best known for its consumer electronics, software, and services. Founded in 1976 as Apple Comput ...

While trying to imagine of another fruit or vegetable, he arrived at

broccoli Broccoli (''Brassica oleracea'' var. ''italica'') is an edible green plant in the Brassicaceae, cabbage family (family Brassicaceae, genus ''Brassica'') whose large Pseudanthium, flowering head, plant stem, stalk and small associated leafy gre ...

. This coincidentally has the same name in nearly every language. On January 23, 2008, Broccoli announced it would be collaborating with leading industry retailer

Animate Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby image, still images are manipulated to create Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on cel, transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and e ...

to form a new company called "AniBro". Broccoli holds a minority 30% ownership of the company, which is managed by the CEO of Animate. On March 30, 2011, Broccoli announced that it would sell its retail operations, including ''Gamers'', to Animate for about 250 million yen. On October 14, 2022, Broccoli announced it would be collaborating with TIS Creation to establish a new game brand named LicoBiTs with a focus on ''otome'' games. The first ''otome'' game developed under LicoBiTs, ''Utakata no Uchronia'', was released on April 11, 2024. On April 14, 2023, Happinet has announced that the company is aiming to make Broccoli a fully owned subsidiary through a friendly takeover bid. The deal was finalized on June 13 that same year.

Former subsidiaries

Gamers

Broccoli previously owned a chain of retail stores, ''Gamers'', which distributes anime, manga,

audio drama Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatised, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine ...

s, anime music CDs,

figurine A figurine (a diminutive form of the word ''figure'') or statuette is a small, three-dimensional sculpture that represents a human, deity or animal, or, in practice, a pair or small group of them. Figurines have been made in many media, with cla ...

s, snacks,

stationery Stationery refers to writing materials, including cut paper, envelopes, continuous form paper, and other office supplies. Stationery usually specifies materials to be written on by hand (e.g., letter paper) or by equipment such as computer p ...

apparel Clothing (also known as clothes, garments, dress, apparel, or attire) is any item worn on a human human body, body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin s ...

, posters, calendars, trading cards and accessories such as cell phone straps and

keychain A keychain () (also keyring) is a small ring or chain of metal to which several keys, or fobs can be attached. The terms keyring and keychain are often used interchangeably to mean both the individual ring, or a combined unit of a ring and fob ...

s. Headquartered at the

Akihabara is a neighborhood in the Chiyoda ward of Tokyo, Japan, generally considered to be the area surrounding Akihabara Station (nicknamed ''Akihabara Electric Town''). This area is part of the and Kanda-Sakumachō districts of Chiyoda. There is an ...

location in Tokyo, the store has locations throughout Japan. The first Gamers opened in

Ikebukuro is a commercial and entertainment district in Toshima, Tokyo, Japan. Toshima ward offices, Ikebukuro Station, and several shops, restaurants, and department stores are located within city limits. Transportation At the center of Ikebukuro is ...

, a district of

Tokyo, Japan Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

in July 1996, and which closed its doors on January 15, 2006. Broccoli opened a store in Los Angeles,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, Anime Gamers USA, that also acted as the main distributor of Broccoli Book's releases in the United States. On November 20, 2008, Broccoli announced that they would be withdrawing from the US market and closed down shop, shortly afterward. Gamers was eventually sold to rival, Animate.

Broccoli Books

Broccoli Books was a

subsidiary A subsidiary, subsidiary company, or daughter company is a company (law), company completely or partially owned or controlled by another company, called the parent company or holding company, which has legal and financial control over the subsidia ...

that published

in North America. It had a boys love imprint, Boysenberry Books, that launched in 2007. It ceased operations in December 2008 and all the titles reverted to the Japanese holders.

Synch-Point

The Synch-Point division produced English-language versions of

and

for North American distribution. Originally started as the anime division for

Digital Manga Digital Manga is a California-based publishing company that licenses and releases Japanese manga, anime, and related merchandise in the English language. Digital Manga also owns and operates eManga, a digital publishing site for manga and l ...

in 2001, they were split off and acquired by Broccoli in 2002. They went on a hiatus in March 2005, before shutting down in 2008. The company was known for incomplete English dubs, with the exception of ''

FLCL is an anime created and directed by Kazuya Tsurumaki, written by Yōji Enokido, and produced by the FLCL Production Committee, which consisted of Gainax, Production I.G, and King Records. The series tells the adventures of the ...

'' which has since been subsequently re-licensed to

Funimation Funimation was an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming service. Launched in 2016, the service was one of the leading distributors of anime ...

, while the second and third seasons were licensed by

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

References

External links

* * * {{Authority control Bandai Namco Holdings subsidiaries Mass media companies of Japan Video game companies of Japan Anime companies Video game companies established in 1994 Mass media companies established in 1994 Mass media in Tokyo Japanese companies established in 1994