That said, Japan’s character business is not guaranteed to remain secure forever.
This is because new intellectual properties (IPs) are not easily created, and even when they are, it takes time for them to grow.

For example, Godzilla debuted in 1954, Hello Kitty in 1974, Mario in 1981, Dragon Ball in 1984, and Pokémon in 1996.
Godzilla has existed for 70 years, Hello Kitty for 50, and even Pokémon is nearly 30 years old.

That alone shows how much time it takes for a character to be loved and accepted.
However, the number of creators—particularly animators—is declining due to Japan’s shrinking population.
Although it is necessary to continue launching new IPs, the number of people capable of creating them is decreasing, which poses a major challenge.

At the same time, it is not simply a matter of recklessly churning out new IPs.
Recently, characters like Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, My Hero Academia, and Chiikawa have gained popularity.
Yet Shueisha, the publisher, is not publicly listed, and Chiikawa is a manga that author Nagano started on social media.

For listed companies with substantial capital, the attempt to deliberately create IPs for profit can become problematic. If such projects fail, they risk negatively impacting performance and stock prices, which inevitably leads to short-term thinking.

Conclusion

To preserve Japan’s creativity into the future and enrich people’s lives with high-quality works, it is essential to both secure creators and maintain a healthy cycle of renewal for content.

Examples like Chiikawa, which began on social media and grew into a social phenomenon, show that we live in an age where anyone can become a creator. This environment aligns perfectly with the Japanese worldview of “Yaoyorozu no Kami,” the belief in Eight Million Gods that see spirit in all things.

For this reason, both publishers and fans must learn to recognize truly high-quality works, invest in them appropriately, and nurture them over the long term.

Rather than binding creators for short-term profit, society as a whole must support a sustainable cycle of creativity.
As long as that is achieved, Japan’s creativity will never be lost.

Source:
"Entertainment Contents∞2023-Last chance to change-[Reference Materials Collection]," Keidanren
“Content-Related Reference Materials,” Cabinet Office, Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters
“Japan’s content market size in 2024 showed a slight increase from the previous year, reaching 14.9003 trillion yen.” Human Media Inc.
"Challenges on the Supply Side of Japan's Animation Industry." — JRI