Japanese chain retailer Books Kinokuniya, which operates 71 stores in Japan and 47 stores in 10 other countries, has had a significant footprint in the U.S. for years. Lately, Kinokuniya USA has been reaping the benefits of the current stateside popularity of Japanese culture: sales are up 107% in 2025 over 2024, according to the company.
When its Los Angeles store reopens later this year, the chain will have 17 outlets in metro areas across the country. Kinokuniya USA stores range in size from 1,500 square feet in Plano, Tex., to the 24,000-square-foot flagship in New York City. The oldest outlet, located in an 11,000-square-foot space anchoring San Francisco’s Japan Center shopping mall, opened its doors in 1969 and remains second only to the flagship store in terms of sales.
All locations stock Japanese- and English-language books, typically in a 30%-70% split. Café areas in some of the stores serve Japanese teas and snacks, and the Seattle shop carries Chinese-language books as well as Japanese and English titles.
“Each outlet has unique features and characteristics,” says Kinokuniya USA SVP Naoki Oyamatsu. “We’re different from other chain stores.” Managers have a lot of autonomy, he explains. “We’re more like independent bookstores: each store has different merchandise; each is defined by its customers.”
Books compose about 50% of each store’s total inventory, with stationery, gifts, and sidelines imported from Japan and China making up the balance. Oyamatsu points out that highly visual titles including manga, manhwa, and art books are particularly popular, because readers can enjoy the art without speaking the language. A significant number of customers are of Asian ancestry, but, he notes, Japanese visitors and expats account for only a small percentage of the clientele at most of the stores.
Manga and anime-related toys, games, and media have always been popular categories at Kinokuniya, and “they’re so huge now,” Oyamatsu says, recalling that sales of manga quadrupled during the pandemic. “People stayed home and enjoyed Netflix and other streaming services, and started watching anime. They then searched for the manga that the anime are based on.” Sales have since leveled off, but manga remains the chain’s bestselling category, with sales this past year up 210% compared with 2018.
Current top sellers at Kinokuniya USA stores include two Viz releases from October: Nana, Vol. 1 (25th anniversary ed.) by Ai Yazawa (translated by Kōji Gotō; adapted by Allison Wolfe) and My Hero Academia, Vol. 42 by Kohei Horikoshi (translated by Caleb D. Cook). Each includes a Kinokuniya-exclusive shikishi art board done by its respective mangaka.
Emphasizing the degree to which Kinokuniya strategically targets “Gen Z, people who like manga and Japanese culture,” Oyamatsu says the company exhibits its wares at Anime NYC, the San Diego and New York comic cons, and other conventions appealing to its target demographic. “At the same time, we have partnerships with Japanese publishers who send famous authors and artists to these conventions, so we have an opportunity to invite these authors and artists into our stores for events.”
Oyamatsu says Kinokuniya USA would like to open two or three additional stores by the end of 2026. Nothing has been announced, but executives have been scouting locations. Decisions hinge on establishing good relationships with mall developers who already lease space to a critical mass of Asian-friendly businesses, he explains. “We expect landlords to have an understanding of our culture. If we’re in a purely American shopping mall, we’ll be isolated, so we want a mixture of tenants representative of Asian culture: ramen shops, sushi restaurants, Asian cafes, Asian grocery stores.”
He likens the synergy to a theme park: “People who enjoy Asian culture can come and spend all day, with the shopping and the food. We want to provide an experience.”
