Talk about niche marketing. Ed Sherman is selling a product he estimates less than 1 percent of all San Diegans have even heard of.
As the owner of San Diego-based Rising Sun Creations, Sherman sells toys, model kits and soundtracks for “anim & #233;” , the term American fans use to describe Japanese animation.
Some Japanese cartoons have become very popular on American TV, like the English-language versions of “Dragonball Z,” which airs on Cartoon Network, and “Sailor Moon.”
However, Rising Sun is as likely to sell merchandise for shows that have never been broadcast stateside, such as “Inu-Yasha,” “Love Hina” and “Martian Successor Nadesico.”
And there’s a ready market for products from these unseen TV shows. Most anim & #233; fans are familiar with these titles, Sherman said.
“The people into anim & #233;, they know everything,” he said. “They’re like maniacs for this stuff, and they live for it.”
In fact, much of what Sherman carries come from customer suggestions. They’re far more knowledgeable about anim & #233; than he is, he said.
In other cases, Sherman is able to gauge what’s going to be hot. He’s predicting “Inu-Yasha” will do well, since the new series was created by the same woman who did another popular show called “Ranma & #733;.”
Sherman has a few other business strategies to stay ahead of the competition. Most of his merchandise can’t be found anywhere else, while with some popular items, he can usually beat his competitors’ prices since he deals directly with the Japanese distributors.
Rising Sun doesn’t sell videos of the anim & #233; programs. Sherman said Suncoast Video and other stores already carry anim & #233;, and it would be impossible to compete against them, he said.
Rising Sun has been in the wholesale business since 1995, importing anim & #233; products directly from Japan and selling them over the Internet at (www.rsc-online.com). Just two months ago, Sherman added a retail store to complement his online business, he said.
Sherman took advantage of a vacancy at the Mission Valley Mall to open a temporary location there at a reduced rent. By the end of October, he plans to move the retail store to a more permanent site in the Mission Valley area.
