VIZ Media Opens New Online "J-Pop Style Shop" With Zazzle

VIZ Media announced today that they've opened a new online boutique on Zazzle featuring J-Pop-inspired designs. VIZ Media's new "J-Pop Style Shop" features only a few designs to start, but as their press release promises that this "partnership is the initial phase of a larger projected product rollout with Zazzle that will tentatively include shojo-focused fashion designs and other special designs to come in 2009."

The press release is quite coy about whether this shop will later include some of VIZ's line-up of manga and anime characters -- but given that this is described as a "the beginning of a projected ‘bigger picture’ rolls out with Zazzle, which ultimately may include more shojo-focused fashion designs, bigger statement otaku designs and additional popular designs," this leaves open several possibilities. Does this mean a Shojo Beat boutique is also in the works? We'll just have to keep our eye out for more new developments on this front.

So what is Zazzle? Based in Redwood City, California, Zazzle is just a jaunt down the freeway from VIZ Media's San Francisco offices. It's also a popular online print-on-demand company that gives artists and companies (big and small) the opportunity to offer their images and ideas on t-shirts, stationery, bags, accessories and even postage stamps. The "print-on-demand" part is that these items are printed digitally when the customer orders them, so there's no need to invest a ton of money to print hundreds of a given item up front. Zazzle was also one of the first print-on-demand companies to offer digital printing on black shirts -- which is not as easy as it looks.

Check out VIZ's new J-Pop Style Shop, and while you're at it, visit the VIZ Online Shop for all the Naruto, Bleach and Death Note gear you've been dying to get while you're at it. Like many stores in January, the VIZ Shop has several items on sale, including massive Naruto manga boxed set and Death Note throw blankets.

© VIZ Media