Anime characters are the new storefront and Henshin AI is the commerce layer: our character concierges turn fandom into direct revenue. The Problem Engaged anime fans in Japan monetize at roughly 3.3x the rate of fans in the US — not from loving anime more, but because Japan built the infrastructure to take fans' money. Everywhere else, fandom has a last-mile problem, and billions in demand leaks to bootlegs every year. The Solution Character concierges close that last mile. The characters fans identify with become the guides, curating from licensed catalogs, recommending like the best shop clerk in Akihabara, and selling — inside a conversation, at the exact moment of intent. Fans get frictionless access to official goods. IP holders and brands get a direct revenue channel and the fan data they've never had. Why Us Henshin, my licensing practice since 2014, gives us live deal flow with Tokyo's publishers and producers. We can do what platforms can't: access IP, keep licensors happy, and do the "nemawashi" needed to make deals happen. We're starting with anime, where I hold the relationships; the same infrastructure extends to sports, movies, K-pop, and every fandom with the same last-mile problem. Pre-seed (angel), running a select number of pilots with early design partners. If you own IP or an engaged audience: rob@henshin.ai

Anime-dedicated boutique consultancy focused on licensing, production, and M&A, built on over two decades in the industry. -North American licensing agent for manga giant Kodansha, closing numerous deals for IPs such as Attack on Titan. -M&A and acquisitions advisory for anime, manga, and game companies — including advising Tapas leading up to its $510M acquisition by Kakao. -Brokered deals across categories: Displate's entry into anime (Dragon Ball Z, Demon Slayer, and more), N LITE's MFINDA serialization in Kodansha publications, Slushii's Webtoon Original, and more.

-Owned Japan market development, building a pipeline with Dentsu and major Japanese IP holders for Roblox, Discord, and TikTok brand integrations. -Led all revenue, partnerships, and GTM strategy for a Roblox analytics and advertising marketplace serving 100M+ monthly active users.

-Grew flagship virtual character @crc_luna to 3M+ followers — the world's largest anime TikTok account — including 40% growth in six months. -Got 555's original IP featured on TV TOKYO in Japan.

-Led Netflix's anime growth flywheel, driving 50%+ annual viewership increase in 2020 across the global content slate and winning regional buy-in for anime worldwide. -Launched Netflix Anime YouTube and grew it to 1M subscribers (now 2.6M) across six audio and nine subtitle languages with zero ad spend. -Led creative marketing campaigns for Sailor Moon and The Witcher anime films, achieving #1 and #2 category performance. -Launched Netflix's first VTuber; partnered with data science on anime-specific product features

-Executive produced Seis Manos — VIZ Media's first original anime and first Netflix Original Series — sourcing IP, studio, and talent, leading guild contracts, and bringing the title to market. -Built VIZ's gaming portfolio from zero, closing ownership or strategic participation in five game titles. -Developed new content acquisition pipelines across Japan and the US, closing Castlevania home video and Homestuck publishing & merchandise.

-Co-authored Bandai Namco's midterm digital strategy, contributing to a 16.9% Content Business SBU revenue increase to JPY 264B in FY12. -Founded classic IP incubator, overseeing release of 20+ transmedia titles across webcomics, animation, and new games. -Led implementation of Bandai Namco ID — the company's first shared identity system — across multiple business units and titles.

Japan liaison for all creative approvals; business development lead on publishing and music licensing deals.