A new store highlighting the growing popularity of Anime has opened in the North Bay area. It's off Couchie Industrial Drive on the far east end of Nipissing First Nation on Highway 17.
Entrepreneurs Kai Commanda and Alex McKenna are taking on this new adventure. Anime is a style of Japanese film and television animation, typically aimed at adults as well as children.
McKenna, who had a grand opening at their new home on Saturday, Jan. 4, says they set up a temporary spot at Northgate Shopping Centre during the Christmas Holidays.
The business is called NOVA and it shares space at the location which includes Kapture Media Services along with a fireworks business.
McKenna has enjoyed Anime since he was a kid when Pokemon was big.
"Anime is one of those things that, if you know, you know, it's a lot of people have enjoyed it from titles like Pokémon back in our youth, all the way to more current titles like My Hero Academia, which are making waves through this generation's youth. So it's something that's always kind of been there.
"I was a Pokémon kid. I always begged my mom to get me the earliest copies of Pokémon, whether it be Pokémon Red, Pokémon Yellow. And I followed along all the way through until even currently with violet and scarlet."
McKenna says they are an authorized dealer for the Good Smile Company which offers Anime collectible figures and other merchandise.
"There's so many of them. But all those different lines, we are the licensed reseller of them north of Toronto and we're the only one north of Toronto," explained McKenna.
"So it allows people to be able to do pre-orders through us and know that their products going to show up here. and it'll make sure that people know that the products are authentic. So there's not any counterfeit or anything like that, which if you're ordering online, you could possibly come across."
McKenna adds the business has a sewing room to allow them to work on Anime Cosplay costumes as well.
McKenna also believes the new business will open doors for local Indigenous students.
"Indigenous youth themselves found it difficult to find work placement opportunities and being on the reserve, one focus is to open up opportunities for First Nations youth to be able to take school work placements, shadow a business owner, learn about skills that would otherwise be difficult to access," explained McKenna.
