Mid-Western Anime???
I saw this in the DesMoines Register....thought you might enjoy it...
DesMoinesRegister.com: "The small city of Grimes and the big business of Japanese animation - unlikely as that combination may seem - is a reality as Grimes is now home to The Right Stuf International, a multi-million dollar company that is a publisher and a distributor of the art form known as anime.
The Right Stuf was listed in 1999 on Inc magazine's list of the 500 fastest growing private companies. Its sales grew from $237,000 in 1994 to $2 million in 1998. Today, it has annual sales of $10 million.
The company purchased the 76,000-square-foot building that was the site of Faribault Foods' Mrs. Grimes packing and distribution warehouse after it closed last year. On July 1, it moved its headquarters into the building surrounded by a residential area just a few blocks north of Highway 44.
The Right Stuf president, Shawne Kleckner, is a native Iowan who developed his business in the metro area and chooses to remain in Iowa, even though he says airline travel between the company's Japanese office and Des Moines isn't always as convenient as he would like.
The relocation of his company from 3101 104th St. in Urbandale gives the 16-year-old firm room to grow, which based on past history, is likely.
'To be in this facility is exciting, given that we started in a closet with a couple of products,' Kleckner said.
The company has a dual mission. It is a fulfillment house that now sells about 15,000 titles via catalogs, mail, phone and fax orders and the Internet. It distributes its own products and those of other publishers and ships wholesale and retail to all parts of the world.
You might want to check these guys out. Who'd a thunk it?... in Iowa?
Mark
The Anime Times
DesMoinesRegister.com: "The small city of Grimes and the big business of Japanese animation - unlikely as that combination may seem - is a reality as Grimes is now home to The Right Stuf International, a multi-million dollar company that is a publisher and a distributor of the art form known as anime.
The Right Stuf was listed in 1999 on Inc magazine's list of the 500 fastest growing private companies. Its sales grew from $237,000 in 1994 to $2 million in 1998. Today, it has annual sales of $10 million.
The company purchased the 76,000-square-foot building that was the site of Faribault Foods' Mrs. Grimes packing and distribution warehouse after it closed last year. On July 1, it moved its headquarters into the building surrounded by a residential area just a few blocks north of Highway 44.
The Right Stuf president, Shawne Kleckner, is a native Iowan who developed his business in the metro area and chooses to remain in Iowa, even though he says airline travel between the company's Japanese office and Des Moines isn't always as convenient as he would like.
The relocation of his company from 3101 104th St. in Urbandale gives the 16-year-old firm room to grow, which based on past history, is likely.
'To be in this facility is exciting, given that we started in a closet with a couple of products,' Kleckner said.
The company has a dual mission. It is a fulfillment house that now sells about 15,000 titles via catalogs, mail, phone and fax orders and the Internet. It distributes its own products and those of other publishers and ships wholesale and retail to all parts of the world.
You might want to check these guys out. Who'd a thunk it?... in Iowa?
Mark
The Anime Times
posted by Mark Alderwood at 9:18 PM
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