is a Japanese manufacturer of hobby products such as the

Nendoroid The series is a brand of plastic figures created by the Japanese Good Smile Company in 2006. They typically depict characters from anime, manga or video games and are designed with a large head and smaller body to give them a cute appearance. T ...

and figma product lines, as well as scale figures. In addition to production and manufacturing, its business includes design, marketing and distribution. Its products are usually based on anime, manga or video games that are currently popular in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, although the company also produces products based on other media properties such as the voice synthesizer software

Vocaloid is a singing voice synthesizer software product. Its signal processing part was developed through a joint research project led by Kenmochi Hideki at the Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Spain, in 2000 and was not originally intended to b ...

VTubers A , or , is an online entertainer who uses a virtual avatar generated using computer graphics. Real-time motion capture software or technology are often—but not always—used to capture movement. The digital trend originated in Japan in the mid- ...

and various

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

franchises such as

Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appear in American comic books published by ...

and

Masters of the Universe ''Masters of the Universe'' (sometimes referred to as the ''He-Man'' or ''She-Ra'' series) is a sword and planet-themed media franchise created by Mattel. The main premise revolves around the conflict between He-Man (the alter ego of Prince Ada ...

Outline

Good Smile Company was established by Aki Takanori in 2001 as an event management and talent company. Thereafter it began working with Max Factory on hobby related products which soon become the main focus of the company. Good Smile Company is now primarily involved in the planning, production, manufacturing and sales of figures and toys, but also markets accessories and other goods. Good Smile Company also acts as a distributor for a number of other hobby related companies including Max Factory, FREEing and Phat! Company. The company has a particularly long relationship with Max Factory, and often shares booths and display space with them at events such as

Wonder Festival The , or , is a semiannual (February and August) event held in the Makuhari Messe, in Chiba, Japan. It is sponsored by the Kaiyodo manufacturing company. The main focus is to display and sell "garage kits", which are sculptures that usually repr ...

. As of June 2012, Good Smile Company moved from

Matsudo 260px, Matsudo City Hall is a city in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 498,575 in 242,981 households and a population density of 8100 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Matsudo is loca ...

Chiba Chiba may refer to: Places China * (), town in Jianli County, Jingzhou, Hubei Japan * Chiba (city), capital of Chiba Prefecture ** Chiba Station, a train station * Chiba Prefecture, a sub-national jurisdiction in the Greater Tokyo Area on ...

to the

Tokyo Skytree is a broadcasting and observation tower in Sumida, Tokyo. It became the tallest structure in Japan in 2010 * May 2001 – Good Smile Company established in

. * January 2002 – Planning of toys,

OEM An original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is generally perceived as a company that produces non-aftermarket parts and equipment that may be marketed by another manufacturer. It is a common industry term recognized and used by many professional or ...

production begins * September 2004 – First Good Smile Company branded figure is released. * April 2005 – Distribution of hobby related products begins * February 2006 – Start of the

series. * January 2008 – Start of the figma series. * 2010 ** March – Work begins on the

Black Rock Shooter is a Japanese media franchise based on characters created by illustrator Ryohei Fuke, also known as Huke. It revolves around its eponymous character, a mysterious black haired girl with a blazing blue eye. The original illustration insp ...

series. ** August – The Good Smile Cafe is opened. * 2012 ** May – Changed from a

Yūgen Gaisha A , abbreviated in English as "Y.K." or "Co., Ltd.", is a form of business organization in Japan. are based on the Germany, German and were implemented in Japan in the Limited Company Act (') of 1940. The Companies Act of Japan, implemented on Ma ...

to a

Kabushiki Gaisha A or ''kabushiki kaisha'', commonly abbreviated K.K. or KK, is a type of defined under the Companies Act of Japan. The term is often translated as "stock company", " joint-stock company" or "stock corporation". The term ''kabushiki gaisha'' i ...

. ** July – Moved to the

Tokyo Skytree is a broadcasting and observation tower in Sumida, Tokyo. It became the tallest structure in Japan in 2010PVC character

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 cl ...

s. Most products are based on

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

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) 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 prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

characters that are popular within Japan. They have products based on American movies and comics popular in the West such as

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...

and characters from

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

. Popular series included in companies product line-up include ''

Hatsune Miku , also called Miku Hatsune, and officially code-named CV01, is a Vocaloid software voicebank developed by Crypton Future Media and its official moe anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic mascot character, a 16-year-old girl with long, turquoise bu ...

'', ''

'' products, '' Puella Magi Madoka Magica'' products, as well as characters from

Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...

games. They are most well known for: * The

figure series. * The articulated figma figure series (with planning and development by Max Factory). * Scale Figures

Related anime productions

Good Smile Company has been involved in the following productions as a member of the production committee. * ''

Penguin Musume is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tetsuya Takahashi. The manga was serialized in the ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Champion'' between May 2006 and November 2007. The manga was followed by ''Penguin Musume Ma ...

'' (2008) * ''

CANAAN Canaan (; Phoenician: 𐤊𐤍𐤏𐤍 – ; he, כְּנַעַן – , in pausa – ; grc-bib, Χανααν – ;The current scholarly edition of the Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus T ...

'' (2009) * ''

Demon King Daimao , also known as ''Demon King Daimao'', is a Japanese light novel series written by Shōtarō Mizuki and illustrated by Souichi Itō, published by Hobby Japan under their HJ Bunko imprint. The first volume was published on February 1, 2008, and ...

'' (2010) * ''

Tantei Opera Milky Holmes is a media franchise owned by the Japanese trading card game company Bushiroad. The first release was an Internet radio drama, released in December 2009. An anime adaptation by J.C.Staff aired between October and December 2010, with a ...

'' Series (2010、2012) * ''

Dog Days The dog days or are the hot, sultry days of summer. They were historically the period following the heliacal rising of the star system Sirius (known colloquially as the "Dog Star"), which Hellenistic astrology connected with heat, drought, sud ...

'' Series (2011、2012) * ''

Hanasaku Iroha , or ''Hanairo'' for short, is a Japanese 26-episode anime television series produced by P.A. Works and directed by Masahiro Andō. The screenplay was written by Mari Okada, with original character design by Mel Kishida. P.A. Works produced t ...

'' (2011) * ''

Croisée in a Foreign Labyrinth , also titled in French as ''La Croisée dans un Labyrinthe Étranger'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hinata Takeda about a young Japanese girl named Yune who finds herself in late-19th century Paris. The series was ...

'' (2011) * '' Haganai: I Don't Have Many Friends'' Series (2011、2013) * '' The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky'' OVA (2011) * '' Plastic Nee-san'' (2011 - 2012) * ''

'' (Noitamina Version、2012) * ''

Senki Zesshō Symphogear is a Japanese anime television franchise animated by Satelight. The original season aired on Tokyo MX between January and March 2012. The second season entitled ''Symphogear G'' aired between July and September 2013, The third season, ''Sy ...

'' (2012) * '' Berserk: The Golden Age Arc'' (2012) * ''

Tari Tari ''Tari Tari'' is a 2012 Japanese anime television series produced by P.A. Works, written, and directed by Masakazu Hashimoto. The series aired in Japan between July 1 and September 23, 2012 on TV Kanagawa, and was also simulcast by Crunchyroll ...

'' (2012) * ''

Wooser's Hand-to-Mouth Life is a Japanese short CG anime series by Sanzigen, based on a short journal column created by Supercell member Yoshiki Usa and illustrator Tomoko Fujinoki. The series aired on TV Tokyo between October and December 2012, and was streamed on ...

'' (2012) * ''

Da Capo III is a Japanese visual novel developed by Circus that was released in limited and regular editions on April 27, 2012 as a DVD for Windows and is rated for ages 15 and up. It is the third main installment of the ''Da Capo'' visual novel franc ...

'' (2013) * ''

Senyū is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Robinson Haruhara. It was adapted into an anime television series in 2013. A second season was announced for the summer of 2013. Plot 1000 years ago, the Demon King caused a great am ...

'' (2013) * ''

Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet is a Japanese anime television series produced by Production I.G and directed by Kazuya Murata, and aired between April and June 2013. A manga adaptation began serialization in Kadokawa Shoten's ''Newtype Ace'' magazine in January 2013. ...

'' (2013) * ''

Aiura is a Japanese yonkoma shōnen manga series by Chama. It was first published on Niconico Seiga and later in Kadokawa Shoten's ''4-Koma Nano Ace'' magazine. The manga ran between March 2011 and April 2014. An anime television series adaptat ...

'' (2013) * '' Saekano: How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend (2015) * ''

One Punch Man is a Japanese superhero manga series created by One. It tells the story of Saitama, a superhero who, because he can defeat any opponent with a single punch, grows bored from a lack of challenge. One wrote the original webcomic manga v ...

'' (2015) Additionally, they were involved in the production and distribution of the ''

'' film (2010).

Motorsports

In 2008, Good Smile Company became the primary sponsor of

Studie Studie is a Japanese tuning company of BMW and a Super GT team which participates in GT300 class. Since 2018 the team also participates in the GT World Challenge Asia. History Studie was established in 1995 in Yokohama as a BMW parts deale ...

GLAD Racing, a team which took part in the GT300 race division of the ''

Super GT Super GT (stylized as SUPER GT) is a grand touring car racing series that began in 1993. Launched as the , generally referred to as either the JGTC or the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship, the series was renamed to Super GT in 2005. It is ...

'' racing series in a car featuring

illustrations An illustration is a decoration, interpretation or visual explanation of a text, concept or process, designed for integration in print and digital published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, video ...

. In 2010, a new subsidiary company called Good Smile Racing (GSR) was established which became the new racing team owner. Good Smile Racing also produces model cars and related goods to support the racing team with sponsors. After a long struggle in the debut seasons, the team would taste their first success in 2011 season, by winning three out of eight races and take their first driver's championship title in GT300 class. They would later win another two GT300 drivers Championship in

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

and

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

season, being one of the most successful Super GT teams in series' history. In 2017, they also made their international GT debut, becoming the first Japanese GT3 team participating in the

Spa 24 Hours The 24 Hours of Spa is an Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing event for cars held annually since 1924 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium. It is currently sponsored by TotalEnergies. History The Spa 24 Hours was ...

Intercontinental GT Challenge The Intercontinental GT Challenge is a sports car racing series developed by the SRO Group in 2016. It consists of international endurance races for grand tourer racing cars complying with the FIA's GT3 regulations. Format The series is aimed ...

. In 2019 Spa 24 Hours, they partnered with Type-Moon (as Type-Moon Racing),

TRIGGER Trigger may refer to: Notable animals and people ;Mononym * Trigger (horse), owned by cowboy star Roy Rogers ;Nickname * Trigger Alpert (1916–2013), American jazz bassist * "Trigger Mike" Coppola (1900–1966), American gangster ;Surname * Bru ...

, and Black Falcon to field three Mercedes-AMG GT GT3 cars with Hatsune Miku, ''Fate'', and ''

Promare is a 2019 Japanese animated film co-produced by Trigger and XFLAG. It was directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi and written by Kazuki Nakashima. It features character and mecha designs by Shigeto Koyama, 3DCG animation by Sanzigen, and music by H ...

'' liveries. The ''Promare'' car started from pole position and finished 3rd overall and the Hatsune Miku car also finished 3rd in the Silver Cup class, becoming the first itasha team to reach podium in international GT racing. In 2022, Goodsmile Racing marked its entrance in the United States with the Goodsmile Racing Lamborghini Murciélago driven by Ace Ochoco. The Murciélago GT1 race car was unveiled at Anime Expo 2022 at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Anime production business

In recent years, the company played a large part in bringing together four smaller animation companies (Sanzigen, Trigger, Ordet and LIDEN FILMS) and pooling their talent together as a new

holding company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...

named

ULTRA SUPER PICTURES is a Japanese joint holding company established in 2011 by animation studios Sanzigen, Ordet, Trigger and Liden Films. They also co-own a part of ENGI, a studio established by Kadokawa in 2018. Member studios * Sanzigen * Ordet * Trigger ...

. This business is a part of the animation production industry, but focuses not only on the production and development of high quality animation projects, but also the licensing of works, general management and training of new staff in order to create content aimed at a worldwide audience.

Associated companies

* Max Factory * Phat! Company * Good Smile Racing * Good Smile Logistics & Solutions * native * Gift * MAGES. * MEM * Good Smile Shanghai * HiTUBE * Ultra Super Pictures * Orange Rouge

External links

Official United States Website

Official English Website

Official Nendoroid Website - English Version

Official figma Website
(Japanese)
Official Max Factory Website
(Japanese)
Official Company Blog 'Mikatan Blog' - English Version

Good Smile Racing

ULTRA SUPER PICTURES
(Japanese)
Official English Facebook Page

Official French Facebook PageOfficial United States Twitter Account

References

{{Authority control Manufacturing companies based in Tokyo Toy companies of Japan Toy companies established in 2001 Japanese companies established in 2001