News
ICv2: Manga Sales Continued to Grow in the U.S. in 2014
posted on by Lynzee Loveridge
ICv2 is estimating continued growth in manga sales based on statements from Viz Media senior director of sales and marketing Kevin Hamric and an overall 17.7% growth in comic sales.
Hamric stated that shojo manga direct market sales were up 20% percent and Viz Media had an 8% increase in sales over the holiday season. Hamric listed Skip Beat!, Vampire Knight, Black Bird, Kiss of the Rose Princess, Spell of Desire, Black Rose Alice, Honey Blood, and My Love Story!! as examples of shojo and josei manga that are selling well.
Overall, the company's top selling series for 2014 were Naruto, Pokémon, One Piece, Bleach, Death Note, Blue Exorcist, Dragon Ball, All You Need Is Kill, Fullmetal Alchemist, and Studio Ghibli books.
Viz Media expects Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past to be its "biggest" release for 2015.
Viz Media's 2014 fiscal year ends at the end of March.
Thanks to Agent355 for the news tip
this article has been modified since it was originally posted; see change history