Developing products less dependent on characters
First written in FY2017. 1 of 2 entries say "Advanced", first in FY2018-Q2. Latest entry: FY2018-Q2.
No other company in this theme has enough history to compare yet.
- FY2018-Q2AdvancedAnnual report
「Orders for established characters such as Kirby and Doraemon remained strong, while sales of non-character products, including cushions made with highly elastic fabric and food replicas made from flexible materials, also increased. However, these sales were insufficient to offset the decline in the core characters that had performed well in the previous period, resulting in revenue of ¥1,501 million, down 0.8% year on year, and operating profit of ¥99 million, down 20.7%.」
The company specifically discloses sales performance for products independent of character popularity, including cushions made with highly elastic fabric and food replicas made from flexible materials. - FY2017First statedAnnual report
「The company will also work on planning and developing products that do not depend on character popularity in order to secure stable profits.」
The company explicitly identifies the planning and development of non-character products as a means of reducing reliance on character popularity and securing stable profits.